Today in Judaism ~ Today is: Thursday, Cheshvan 27, 5704 ~ 31 October 2013 ~~ Friday, Cheshvan 28, 5774 ~ 1 NOvember 2013

Today in Judaism ~ Today is: Thursday, Cheshvan 27, 5704 ~ 31 October 2013 ~~ Friday, Cheshvan 28, 5774 ~ 1 NOvember 2013

Today in Jewish History:

• Flood ends (2104 BCE) 

On the 27th of Cheshvan of the year 1657 from creation (2104 BCE) "the earth dried" (Genesis 8:14) completing the 365-day duration of the great flood that wiped out all life on earth save for the eight human beings and and the animals (two of each species) in Noah's ark; on this day G-d commanded Noah to "Come out of the ark" and repopulate, settle and civilize the earth.

[See entry for Cheshvan 17 for a Chronology of the Flood.]

Links: Life in a Box; Lunar Flood, Solar Year; The Discovery of Planet Earth; Noach Parshah Page

Daily Quote:

[A very high] level of charity is to give to the poor without knowing to whom one gives, and without the recipient knowing from whom he received. For this is performing a mitzvah solely for the sake of Heaven~-Mishneh Torah, Laws of Charity, 10:8

Daily Study:

Chitas and Rambam for today:

Chumash with Rashi: Parshat Toldot, 5th Portion (Genesis 26:30-27:27) & Parshat Toldot, 6th Portion (Genesis 27:28-28:4)

Chapter 26

30. So he made a feast for them, and they ate and drank.

ל. וַיַּעַשׂ לָהֶם מִשְׁתֶּה וַיֹּאכְלוּ וַיִּשְׁתּוּ:

31. And they arose early in the morning, and they swore one to the other, and Isaac escorted them, and they went away from him in peace.

לא. וַיַּשְׁכִּימוּ בַבֹּקֶר וַיִּשָּׁבְעוּ אִישׁ לְאָחִיו וַיְשַׁלְּחֵם יִצְחָק וַיֵּלְכוּ מֵאִתּוֹ בְּשָׁלוֹם:

32. And it came to pass on that day, that Isaac's servants came and told him about the well that they had dug, and they said to him, "We have found water."

לב. וַיְהִי | בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא וַיָּבֹאוּ עַבְדֵי יִצְחָק וַיַּגִּדוּ לוֹ עַל אֹדוֹת הַבְּאֵר אֲשֶׁר חָפָרוּ וַיֹּאמְרוּ לוֹ מָצָאנוּ מָיִם:

33. And he named it Shibah; therefore, the city is named Beer sheba until this very day.

לג. וַיִּקְרָא אֹתָהּ שִׁבְעָה עַל כֵּן שֵׁם הָעִיר בְּאֵר שֶׁבַע עַד הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה:

Shibah: Because of the covenant [shevuah in Hebrew means oath].

שבעה: על שם הברית:

34. And Esau was forty years old, and he married Judith, the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath, the daughter of Elon the Hittite.

לד. וַיְהִי עֵשָׂו בֶּן אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה וַיִּקַּח אִשָּׁה אֶת יְהוּדִית בַּת בְּאֵרִי הַחִתִּי וְאֶת בָּשְׂמַת בַּת אֵילֹן הַחִתִּי:

forty years old: Esau was compared to a swine, as it is said (Ps. 80:14): “The boar from the forest gnaws at it.” This swine, when it lies down, stretches out its hooves, as if to say, “See, I am a clean (kosher) animal.” So do these [the chiefs of Esau] rob and plunder and then pretend to be honorable. During the entire forty years, Esau kidnapped wives from their husbands and violated them. When he was forty years old, he said:“My father married at forty; I, too, will do the same.” [From Gen. Rabbah 65:1]

בן ארבעים שנה: עשו היה נמשל לחזיר, שנאמר (תהלים פ יד) יכרסמנה חזיר מיער, החזיר הזה כשהוא שוכב פושט טלפיו לומר ראו שאני טהור, כך אלו [אלופי עשו] גוזלים וחומסים ומראים עצמם כשרים. כל ארבעים שנה היה עשו צד נשים מתחת בעליהן ומענה אותם, כשהיה בן ארבעים אמר אבא בן ארבעים שנה נשא אשה, אף אני כן:

35. And they were a vexation of the spirit to Isaac and to Rebecca.

לה. וַתִּהְיֶיןָ מֹרַת רוּחַ לְיִצְחָק וּלְרִבְקָה:

a vexation of the spirit: Heb. מֹרַת רוּחַ, an expression of defiance of spirit הַמְרָאַתרוּחַ like (Deut. 9:24):“You have been rebellious מַמְרִים.” All their deeds were to provoke and to grieve. [From Targum Onkelos]

מורת רוח: לשון המראת רוח, כמו (דברים ט כד) ממרים הייתם כל מעשיהן היו לעצבון:

to Isaac and to Rebecca: for they worshipped idols. [From Midrash Tanchuma, Toledoth 8]

ליצחק ולרבקה: שהיו עובדות עבודה זרה:

Chapter 27

1. It came to pass when Isaac was old, and his eyes were too dim to see, that he called Esau his elder son, and he said to him, "My son," and he said to him, "Here I am."

א. וַיְהִי כִּי זָקֵן יִצְחָק וַתִּכְהֶיןָ עֵינָיו מֵרְאֹת וַיִּקְרָא אֶת עֵשָׂו | בְּנוֹ הַגָּדֹל וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו בְּנִי וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו הִנֵּנִי:

were too dim: Because of the smoke of these [wives of Esau] (who would burn [incense] to the idols) (Tanchuma, Toledoth 8; Pesiktha Rabbathi 12). Another explanation: When Isaac was bound on the altar, and his father was about to slaughter him, the heavens opened, and the ministering angels saw and wept, and their tears fell upon Isaac’s eyes. As a result, his eyes became dim (Gen. Rabbah 65:6). A third explanation: to enable Jacob to take the blessings (Gen. Rabbah 65:8).

ותכהין: בעשנן של אלו. דבר אחר כשנעקד על גבי המזבח והיה אביו רוצה לשחטו, באותה שעה נפתחו השמים וראו מלאכי השרת והיו בוכים וירדו דמעותיהם ונפלו על עיניו, לפיכך כהו עיניו. דבר אחר כדי שיטול יעקב את הברכות:

2. And he said, "Behold now, I have grown old; I do not know the day of my death.

ב. וַיֹּאמֶר הִנֵּה נָא זָקַנְתִּי לֹא יָדַעְתִּי יוֹם מוֹתִי:

I do not know the day of my death: Rabbi Joshua ben Korchah said: If a person reaches the age of [the death of] his parents, he should worry five years beforehand and five years afterwards, and Isaac was one hundred and twenty-three years old. He said, “Perhaps I will reach the age of [the death of] my mother, and she died at one hundred and twenty-seven, and I am thus within five years of her age; therefore, ”I do not know the day of my death," -perhaps [I will die] at my mother’s age and perhaps at my father’s age. [From Gen. Rabbah 65:121]

לא ידעתי יום מותי: אמר רבי יהושע בן קרחה אם מגיע אדם לפרק אבותיו ידאג חמש שנים לפניהם וחמש לאחר כן, ויצחק היה בן מאה עשרים ושלש, אמר שמא לפרק אמי אני מגיע, והיא מתה בת מאה עשרים ושבע והריני בן חמש שנים סמוך לפרקה, לפיכך לא ידעתי יום מותי, שמא לפרק אמי, שמא לפרק אבא:

3. So, now, sharpen your implements, your sword [and take] your bow, and go forth to the field, and hunt game for me.

ג. וְעַתָּה שָׂא נָא כֵלֶיךָ תֶּלְיְךָ וְקַשְׁתֶּךָ וְצֵא הַשָּׂדֶה וְצוּדָה לִּי צָיִד:

your sword: Heb. תֶּלְיְ, your sword, which is usually hung לִתְלוֹתָה.

תליך: חרבך שדרך לתלותה:

So, now, sharpen: שָׂא נָא an expression of sharpening, as we learned in the Mishnah (Beizah 28a):“We may not sharpen a knife [on a whet-stone] but we may sharpen it (מַשִּׂיאָה) against another one [on Yom-Tov].” [Isaac said]: “Sharpen your knife and slaughter properly, lest you feed me neveila ” [an animal not slaughtered according to ritual law] (Gen. Rabbah 65: 13).

שא נא: לשון השחזה כאותה ששנינו (ביצה כח א) אין משחיזין את הסכין אבל משיאה על גבי חברתה, חדד סכינך ושחוט יפה, שלא תאכילני נבלה:

and hunt for me: from ownerless [game], and not from stolen [animals]. [Gen. Rabbah 65:13]

וצודה לי: מן ההפקר ולא מן הגזל:

4. And make for me tasty foods as I like, and bring them to me, and I will eat, in order that my soul will bless you before I die."

ד. וַעֲשֵׂה לִי מַטְעַמִּים כַּאֲשֶׁר אָהַבְתִּי וְהָבִיאָה לִּי וְאֹכֵלָה בַּעֲבוּר תְּבָרֶכְךָ נַפְשִׁי בְּטֶרֶם אָמוּת:

5. But Rebecca overheard when Isaac spoke to Esau his son, and Esau went to the field to hunt game, to bring [it].

ה. וְרִבְקָה שֹׁמַעַת בְּדַבֵּר יִצְחָק אֶל עֵשָׂו בְּנוֹ וַיֵּלֶךְ עֵשָׂו הַשָּׂדֶה לָצוּד צַיִד לְהָבִיא:

to hunt game, to bring: What is the meaning of“to bring” ? If he would not find game, he intended to bring [meat] from stolen [animals]. - [from Gen. Rabbah 65:13]

לצוד ציד להביא: מהו להביא, אם לא ימצא ציד יביא מן הגזל:

6. And Rebecca said to Jacob her son, saying, "Behold I have heard your father speaking to Esau your brother, saying,

ו. וְרִבְקָה אָמְרָה אֶל יַעֲקֹב בְּנָהּ לֵאמֹר הִנֵּה שָׁמַעְתִּי אֶת אָבִיךָ מְדַבֵּר אֶל עֵשָׂו אָחִיךָ לֵאמֹר:

7. 'Bring me game and make me tasty foods, and I will eat, and I will bless you before the Lord before my death.'

ז. הָבִיאָה לִּי צַיִד וַעֲשֵׂה לִי מַטְעַמִּים וְאֹכֵלָה וַאֲבָרֶכְכָה לִפְנֵי יְהֹוָה לִפְנֵי מוֹתִי:

before the Lord: with His consent, that He will approve of what I do.

לפני ה': ברשותו שיסכים על ידי:

8. And now my son, hearken to my voice, to what I am commanding you.

ח. וְעַתָּה בְנִי שְׁמַע בְּקֹלִי לַאֲשֶׁר אֲנִי מְצַוָּה אֹתָךְ:

9. Go now to the flock, and take for me from there two choice kids, and I will make them tasty foods for your father, as he likes.

ט. לֶךְ נָא אֶל הַצֹּאן וְקַח לִי מִשָּׁם שְׁנֵי גְּדָיֵי עִזִּים טֹבִים וְאֶעֱשֶׂה אֹתָם מַטְעַמִּים לְאָבִיךָ כַּאֲשֶׁר אָהֵב:

and take for me: [“לִי” indicates that] they are mine, and they are not stolen, because so had Isaac written for her in her marriage contract, that she might take two kids every day (Gen. Rabbah 65:14).

וקח לי: משלי הם ואינם גזל, שכך כתב לה יצחק בכתובתה ליטול שני גדיי עזים בכל יום:

two choice kids: Now did Isaac’s menu consist of two kids? But [the explanation is that] he sacrificed one as a Paschal offering, and one he made into tasty foods. [This is found] in Pirkei d’Rabbi Eliezer (ch. 32).

שני גדיי עזים: וכי שני גדיי עזים היה מאכלו של יצחק, אלא האחד הקריב לפסחו והאחד עשה מטעמים. בפרקי דרבי אליעזר (פרק לב):

as he likes: for the taste of a kid is like the taste of a deer.

כאשר אהב: כי טעם הגדי כטעם הצבי:

10. And you shall bring [them] to your father that he may eat, in order that he bless you before his death."

י. וְהֵבֵאתָ לְאָבִיךָ וְאָכָל בַּעֲבֻר אֲשֶׁר יְבָרֶכְךָ לִפְנֵי מוֹתוֹ:

11. And Jacob said to Rebecca his mother, "Behold, my brother Esau is a hairy man, whereas I am a smooth man.

יא. וַיֹּאמֶר יַעֲקֹב אֶל רִבְקָה אִמּוֹ הֵן עֵשָׂו אָחִי אִישׁ שָׂעִר וְאָנֹכִי אִישׁ חָלָק:

a hairy man: Heb. אִישׁ שָׂעִר, one possessing hair.

איש שער: בעל שער:

12. Perhaps my father will touch me, and I will appear to him as a deceiver, and I will bring upon myself a curse and not a blessing."

יב. אוּלַי יְמֻשֵּׁנִי אָבִי וְהָיִיתִי בְעֵינָיו כִּמְתַעְתֵּעַ וְהֵבֵאתִי עָלַי קְלָלָה וְלֹא בְרָכָה:

will touch me: Heb. יְמֻשֵּׁנִי, similar to (Deut. 28:29):“feeling (מְמַשֵּׁשׁ) at noon.”

ימשני: כמו (דברים כח כט) ממשש בצהרים:  

13. And his mother said to him, "On me is your curse, my son. Only hearken to my voice and go, take [them] for me."

יג. וַתֹּאמֶר לוֹ אִמּוֹ עָלַי קִלְלָתְךָ בְּנִי אַךְ שְׁמַע בְּקֹלִי וְלֵךְ קַח לִי:

14. So he went, and he took, and he brought [them] to his mother, and his mother made tasty foods, as his father liked.

יד. וַיֵּלֶךְ וַיִּקַּח וַיָּבֵא לְאִמּוֹ וַתַּעַשׂ אִמּוֹ מַטְעַמִּים כַּאֲשֶׁר אָהֵב אָבִיו:

15. And Rebecca took the costly garments of Esau, her elder son, which were with her in the house, and she dressed Jacob, her younger son.

טו. וַתִּקַּח רִבְקָה אֶת בִּגְדֵי עֵשָׂו בְּנָהּ הַגָּדֹל הַחֲמֻדֹת אֲשֶׁר אִתָּהּ בַּבָּיִת וַתַּלְבֵּשׁ אֶת יַעֲקֹב בְּנָהּ הַקָּטָן:

the costly: הַחַמוּדֹת [means] the clean ones, as the Targum renders: דַּכְיָתָא [clean ones]. Another explanation: The ones [garments] that he had coveted [שֶׁחָמַד] from Nimrod. [From Gen. Rabbah 65:16]

החמודות: הנקיות, כתרגומו דכייתא. דבר אחר שחמד אותן מן נמרוד:

which were with her in the house: But He [Esau] had many wives, [with whom to entrust his garments] and yet he entrusted them [his garments] with his mother?! He was well aware of their deeds, and he was suspicious of them. [From Gen. Rabbah 65:16]

אשר אתה בבית: והלא כמה נשים היו לו והוא מפקיד אצל אמו, אלא שהיה בקי במעשיהן וחושדן: 

16. And the hides of the kids she put on his hands and on the smoothness of his neck.

טז. וְאֵת עֹרֹת גְּדָיֵי הָעִזִּים הִלְבִּישָׁה עַל יָדָיו וְעַל חֶלְקַת צַוָּארָיו:

17. And she gave the tasty foods and the bread that she had made, into the hand of Jacob her son.

יז. וַתִּתֵּן אֶת הַמַּטְעַמִּים וְאֶת הַלֶּחֶם אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂתָה בְּיַד יַעֲקֹב בְּנָהּ:

18. And he came to his father and said, "My father!" And he said, "Here I am. Who are you, my son?"

יח. וַיָּבֹא אֶל אָבִיו וַיֹּאמֶר אָבִי וַיֹּאמֶר הִנֶּנִּי מִי אַתָּה בְּנִי:

19. And Jacob said to his father, "I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you have spoken to me. Please rise, sit down and eat of my game, so that your soul will bless me."

יט. וַיֹּאמֶר יַעֲקֹב אֶל אָבִיו אָנֹכִי עֵשָׂו בְּכֹרֶךָ עָשִׂיתִי כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבַּרְתָּ אֵלָי קוּם נָא שְׁבָה וְאָכְלָה מִצֵּידִי בַּעֲבוּר תְּבָרֲכַנִּי נַפְשֶׁךָ:

I am…Esau…your firstborn: [He meant]: I am the one who is bringing you [food] and Esau is your firstborn. [From Tanchuma Buber]

אנכי עשו בכורך: אנכי המביא לך, ועשו הוא בכורך:

I have done: many things, as you have spoken to me.

עשיתי: כמה דברים כאשר דברת אלי:

sit down: Heb. שְׁבָה, an expression of sitting around the table [at a meal]. Therefore, it is rendered [by Onkelos] אִסְתְּחַר.

שבה: לשון מיסב על השלחן, לכך מתורגם אסתחר:

20. And Isaac said to his son, "How is it that you have found [it] so quickly, my son?" And he said, "Because the Lord your God prepared it before me."

כ. וַיֹּאמֶר יִצְחָק אֶל בְּנוֹ מַה זֶּה מִהַרְתָּ לִמְצֹא בְּנִי וַיֹּאמֶר כִּי הִקְרָה יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לְפָנָי:

21. And Isaac said to Jacob, "Please come closer, so that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not."

כא. וַיֹּאמֶר יִצְחָק אֶל יַעֲקֹב גְּשָׁה נָּא וַאֲמֻשְׁךָ בְּנִי הַאַתָּה זֶה בְּנִי עֵשָׂו אִם לֹא:

Please come closer, so that I may feel you: Isaac said to himself, “Esau does not usually mention the name of Heaven with frequency, but this one said: ‘Because the Lord your God prepared it….’” [from Gen. Rabbah 65:19]

גשה נא ואמשך: אמר יצחק בלבו אין דרך עשו להיות שם שמים שגור בפיו, וזה אמר (פסוק כ) כי הקרה ה' אלהיך:

22. So Jacob drew near to Isaac his father, and he felt him, and he said, "The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau."

כב. וַיִּגַּשׁ יַעֲקֹב אֶל יִצְחָק אָבִיו וַיְמֻשֵּׁהוּ וַיֹּאמֶר הַקֹּל קוֹל יַעֲקֹב וְהַיָּדַיִם יְדֵי עֵשָׂו:

the voice of Jacob: who speaks entreatingly: “Please rise,” but Esau spoke harshly, “Let my father arise!” [From Tanchuma Buber, Toledoth 15]

קול יעקב: שמדבר בלשון תחנונים (פסוק יט) קום נא, אבל עשו בלשון קנטוריא דבר (פסוק לא) יקום אבי:

23. And he did not recognize him because his hands were hairy like the hands of his brother Esau, and he blessed him.

כג. וְלֹא הִכִּירוֹ כִּי הָיוּ יָדָיו כִּידֵי עֵשָׂו אָחִיו שְׂעִרֹת וַיְבָרֲכֵהוּ:

24. And he said, "Are you [indeed] my son Esau?" And he said, "I am."

כד. וַיֹּאמֶר אַתָּה זֶה בְּנִי עֵשָׂו וַיֹּאמֶר אָנִי:

And he said, “I am.”: He did not say, “I am Esau,” but “I am.” [From Num. Rabbah 10:6]

ויאמר אני: לא אמר אני עשו אלא אני:  

25. And he said, "Serve [it] to me that I may eat of the game of my son, so that my soul will bless you." And he served him, and he ate, and he brought him wine, and he drank.

כה. וַיֹּאמֶר הַגִּשָׁה לִּי וְאֹכְלָה מִצֵּיד בְּנִי לְמַעַן תְּבָרֶכְךָ נַפְשִׁי וַיַּגֶּשׁ לוֹ וַיֹּאכַל וַיָּבֵא לוֹ יַיִן וַיֵּשְׁתְּ:

26. And his father Isaac said to him, "Please come closer and kiss me, my son."

כו. וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו יִצְחָק אָבִיו גְּשָׁה נָּא וּשֲׁקָה לִּי בְּנִי:

27. And he came closer, and he kissed him, and he smelled the fragrance of his garments, and he blessed him, and he said, "Behold, the fragrance of my son is like the fragrance of a field, which the Lord has blessed!

כז. וַיִּגַּשׁ וַיִּשַּׁק לוֹ וַיָּרַח אֶת רֵיחַ בְּגָדָיו וַיְבָרֲכֵהוּ וַיֹּאמֶר רְאֵה רֵיחַ בְּנִי כְּרֵיחַ שָׂדֶה אֲשֶׁר בֵּרֲכוֹ יְהֹוָה:

and he smelled, etc.: Is it not so that there is no odor more offensive than that of washed goat skins? But this teaches us that the fragrance of the Garden of Eden entered with him. [From Tanchuma Buber 16]

וירח וגו': והלא אין ריח רע יותר משטף העזים, אלא מלמד שנכנסה עמו ריח גן עדן:

is like the fragrance of a field, which the Lord has blessed: for He gave it a pleasant fragrance, and this is a field of apples. So did our Sages explain it. [From Ta’anith 29b]

כריח שדה אשר ברכו ה': שנתן בו ריח טוב, וזה שדה תפוחים, כן דרשו רבותינו ז"ל:

Chapter 27

28. And may the Lord give you of the dew of the heavens and [of] the fatness of the earth and an abundance of grain and wine.

כח. וְיִתֶּן לְךָ הָאֱלֹהִים מִטַּל הַשָּׁמַיִם וּמִשְׁמַנֵּי הָאָרֶץ וְרֹב דָּגָן וְתִירשׁ:

And may the Lord give you: May He give and repeatedly give (444 Gen. Rabbah 66:3). According to its simple meaning, it refers back to the previous topic: “Look, the fragrance of my son” which God has given him, “is like the fragrance of a field, etc.,” and furthermore,“May He give you of the dew of the heavens, etc.”

ויתן לך: יתן ויחזור ויתן. ולפי פשוטו מוסב לענין הראשון ראה ריח בני, שנתן לו הקב"ה, כריח שדה וגו' ועוד יתן לך מטל השמים וגו':

of the dew of the heavens: [It is to be interpreted] according to its simple meaning, and there are Midrashic interpretations of many kinds. (Another explanation: What is the meaning of הָאֱלֹהִים [I.e., why is the Divine Name which signifies God’s attribute of Justice used here? To teach that He will treat you] with justice. If you deserve it, He will give to you, and if not, He will not give to you. But to Esau he said, “The fat places of the earth shall be your dwelling place.” Whether righteous or wicked, He will give to you. And from him [Isaac], Solomon learned; when he built the Temple, he arranged his prayer, [saying that] an Israelite, who has faith and justifies the Divine decree upon himself, will not complain about You; therefore (I Kings 8:39): “and give to every man [Israelite] according to his ways,” for You know what is in his heart. But a gentile lacks faith; therefore [Solomon] said (ibid. verse 43): “You shall hear in heaven, etc., and do according to all that the stranger calls upon You for,” i.e., whether he is deserving or undeserving, give to him, so that he should not complain about You. [This is found] in an old and correct edition of Rashi .) [From Tanchuma Buber, Toledoth 14]

מטל השמים: כמשמעו, ומדרש אגדה יש להרבה פנים:

29. Nations shall serve you and kingdoms shall bow down to you; you shall be a master over your brothers, and your mother's sons shall bow down to you. Those who curse you shall be cursed, and those who bless you shall be blessed."

כט. יַעַבְדוּךָ עַמִּים וְיִשְׁתַּחֲווּ לְךָ לְאֻמִּים הֱוֵה גְבִיר לְאַחֶיךָ וְיִשְׁתַּחֲווּ לְךָ בְּנֵי אִמֶּךָ אֹרֲרֶיךָ אָרוּר וּמְבָרֲכֶיךָ בָּרוּךְ:

your mother’s sons: But Jacob said to Judah, “your father’s sons” because he [Jacob] had sons from many mothers, but here, since he [Isaac] had married only one wife, he said, “your mother’s sons” (Gen. Rabbah 66:4).

בני אמך: ויעקב אמר ליהודה (להלן מט ח) בני אביך, לפי שהיו לו בנים מכמה אמהות, וכאן שלא נשא אלא אשה אחת אמר בני אמך:

Those who curse you shall be cursed, and those who bless you shall be blessed: But concerning Balaam, Scripture says (Num. 24:9):“Those who bless you shall be blessed, and those who curse you shall be cursed” (Gen. Rabbah ibid.). [The reason for this is that, for] the righteous-their beginning is suffering and their end is tranquillity; and thus, those who curse them and cause them pain precede those who bless them. Isaac therefore mentioned the curse of those who curse before the blessing of those who bless. As for the wicked, however, their beginning is tranquillity, and their end is suffering; Balaam, therefore, mentioned the blessing before the curse. [From Gen. Rabbah 66:4]

ארריך ארור ומברכיך ברוך: ובבלעם הוא אומר (במדבר כד ט) מברכיך ברוך ואורריך ארור. הצדיקים תחלתם יסורים וסופן שלוה, ואורריהם ומצעריהם קודמים למברכיהם, לפיכך יצחק הקדים קללת אוררים לברכת מברכים. והרשעים תחלתן שלוה וסופן יסורין, לפיכך בלעם הקדים ברכה לקללה:

30. And it came to pass, when Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and it came to pass Jacob had just left his father Isaac's presence, that his brother Esau came from his hunt.

ל. וַיְהִי כַּאֲשֶׁר כִּלָּה יִצְחָק לְבָרֵךְ אֶת יַעֲקֹב וַיְהִי אַךְ יָצֹא יָצָא יַעֲקֹב מֵאֵת פְּנֵי יִצְחָק אָבִיו וְעֵשָׂו אָחִיו בָּא מִצֵּידוֹ:

had just left: Heb. יָצֹא יָצָא, [lit., going out, had gone out.] This one was leaving, and that one was coming in. [From Gen. Rabbah 66:5]

יצא יצא: זה יוצא וזה בא:  

31. And he too had made tasty foods, and he brought [them] to his father, and he said to his father, "Let my father arise and eat of the game of his son, so that your soul will bless me. "

לא. וַיַּעַשׂ גַּם הוּא מַטְעַמִּים וַיָּבֵא לְאָבִיו וַיֹּאמֶר לְאָבִיו יָקֻם אָבִי וְיֹאכַל מִצֵּיד בְּנוֹ בַּעֲבֻר תְּבָרֲכַנִּי נַפְשֶׁךָ:

32. And his father Isaac said to him, "Who are you?" And he said, "I am your son, your firstborn, Esau."

לב. וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ יִצְחָק אָבִיו מִי אָתָּה וַיֹּאמֶר אֲנִי בִּנְךָ בְכֹרְךָ עֵשָׂו:

33. And Isaac shuddered a great shudder, and he said, "Who then is the one who hunted game and brought it to me, and I ate of everything while you had not yet come, and I blessed him? He, too, shall be blessed."

לג. וַיֶּחֱרַד יִצְחָק חֲרָדָה גְּדֹלָה עַד מְאֹד וַיֹּאמֶר מִי אֵפוֹא הוּא הַצָּד צַיִד וַיָּבֵא לִי וָאֹכַל מִכֹּל בְּטֶרֶם תָּבוֹא וָאֲבָרֲכֵהוּ גַּם בָּרוּךְ יִהְיֶה:

And Isaac shuddered: [וַיֶּחרָד is to be explained] as the Targum, וּתְוָה, an expression of bewilderment. According to the Midrash, however, he [actually shuddered because] he saw Gehinnom open beneath him. [From Tanchuma, Vezoth Haberachah 1]

ויחרד: כתרגומו ותוה לשון תימה. ומדרשו ראה גיהנם פתוחה מתחתיו:

Who then: [the word] אֵפוֹא is an expression by itself, which has many usages. Another explanation: אֵפוֹא is a combination of אַיּה [where] and פֹּה [here], [so that מִי אֵפוֹא means]: Who is he and where is he, who hunted game?

מי אפוא: לשון לעצמו, משמש עם כמה דברים. איפוא, איה פה, מי הוא ואיפוא הוא הצד ציד:

and I ate of everything: Any flavors I wished to taste, I tasted in it (Gen. Rabbah 67:2).

ואכל מכל: מכל טעמים שבקשתי לטעום טעמתי בו:

He, too, shall be blessed: That you should not say that had Jacob not deceived his father, he would not have received the blessings. Therefore, he concurred and blessed him intentionally (Gen. Rabbah 67:2).

גם ברוך יהיה: שלא תאמר אילולי שרימה יעקב לאביו לא נטל את הברכות, לכך הסכים וברכו מדעתו:

34. When Esau heard his father's words, he cried out a great and bitter cry, and he said to his father, "Bless me too, O my father!"

לד. כִּשְׁמֹעַ עֵשָׂו אֶת דִּבְרֵי אָבִיו וַיִּצְעַק צְעָקָה גְּדֹלָה וּמָרָה עַד מְאֹד וַיֹּאמֶר לְאָבִיו בָּרֲכֵנִי גַם אָנִי אָבִי:

35. And he said, "Your brother came with cunning and took your blessing."

לה. וַיֹּאמֶר בָּא אָחִיךָ בְּמִרְמָה וַיִּקַּח בִּרְכָתֶךָ:

with cunning: with cleverness. [From Targumim]

במרמה: בחכמה:

36. And he said, "Is it for this reason that he was named Jacob? For he has deceived me twice; he took my birthright, and behold, now he has taken my blessing." And he said, "Have you not reserved a blessing for me?"

לו. וַיֹּאמֶר הֲכִי קָרָא שְׁמוֹ יַעֲקֹב וַיַּעְקְבֵנִי זֶה פַעֲמַיִם אֶת בְּכֹרָתִי לָקָח וְהִנֵּה עַתָּה לָקַח בִּרְכָתִי וַיֹּאמַר הֲלֹא אָצַלְתָּ לִּי בְּרָכָה:

And he said,“Is it for this reason that he was named Jacob: הִכִי is an expression denoting the interrogative, as in (below 29:15):”Is it because (הִכִי) you are my kinsman…?“ Was he named Jacob (יַעִקֹב) because of the future, because he was destined to deceive me (לְעָקְבֵנִי) ? Midrash Tanchuma (Buber, Toledoth 23) [asks]: Why did Isaac shudder? He said, ”Perhaps I am guilty of an iniquity, for I have blessed the younger son before the older one, and thus altered the order of the relationship.“ [Thereupon], Esau started crying, ”He has already deceived me twice!“ His father said to him, ”What did he do to you?“ He replied, ”He took my birthright.“ He [Isaac] said,”That is why I was troubled and shuddered, for [I was afraid that] perhaps I [had] transgressed the line of strict justice, [but] now [that I know that] I actually blessed the firstborn, ‘he too shall be blessed’."

הכי קרא שמו: לשון תימה הוא, כמו (לקמן כט טו) הכי אחי אתה, שמא לכך נקרא שמו יעקב על שם סופו שהוא עתיד לעקבני. תנחומא (תנחומא ישן כג) למה חרד יצחק, אמר שמא עון יש בי שברכתי הקטן לפני הגדול, ושניתי סדר היחס. התחיל עשו מצעק ויעקבני זה פעמים, אמר לו אביו מה עשה לך, אמר לו את בכורתי לקח, אמר בכך הייתי מצר וחרד שמא עברתי על שורת הדין, עכשיו לבכור ברכתי, גם ברוך יהיה:

for he has deceived me: Heb. וַיַעְקְבֵנִי. [To be explained] according to the Targum וּכַמַנִי [meaning]: and he lay in wait for me. [The word] וְאָרַב [(Deut. 19:11):“and he lies in wait,”] is translated by the Targum as וּכְמַן Others read in the Targum [not וּכַמַנִי, but] וְחַכְּמַנִי [meaning]: he outwitted me.

ויעקבני: כתרגומו וכמני, ארבני. וארב, וכמן. ויש מתרגמין וחכמני נתחכם לי:

reserved: [אָצַלְתּ] an expression of separation, as in וַיָּאצֶל (“and he separated”) (Num. 11:25). (Other editions read: וַיַּצֵּל (below 31:9). [From Targum Onkelos]

אצלת: לשון הפרשה, כמו (במדבר יא כה) ויאצל:

37. And Isaac answered and said to Esau, "Behold, I made him a master over you, and I gave him all his brothers as servants, and I have sustained him with corn and wine; so for you then, what shall I do, my son?"

לז. וַיַּעַן יִצְחָק וַיֹּאמֶר לְעֵשָׂו הֵן גְּבִיר שַׂמְתִּיו לָךְ וְאֶת כָּל אֶחָיו נָתַתִּי לוֹ לַעֲבָדִים וְדָגָן וְתִירשׁ סְמַכְתִּיו וּלְכָה אֵפוֹא מָה אֶעֱשֶׂה בְּנִי:

Behold…a master: This is the seventh blessing [given to Jacob] and yet he puts it first? Rather, he said to him, “What use will a blessing be to you? If you acquire property, it will be his, for I have made him a master over you, and whatever a slave acquires, belongs to his master.” [From Gen. 67:5]

הן גביר: ברכה זו שביעית היא והוא עושה אותה ראשונה, אלא אמר לו מה תועלת לך בברכה, אם תקנה נכסים שלו הם, שהרי גביר שמתיו לך ומה שקנה עבד קנה רבו:

so for you then, what shall I do: Where will I seek for something to do for you?

ולכה אפוא מה אעשה: איה פה אבקש מה לעשות לך:

38. And Esau said to his father, "Have you [but] one blessing, my father? Bless me too, my father." And Esau raised his voice and wept.

לח. וַיֹּאמֶר עֵשָׂו אֶל אָבִיו הַבֲרָכָה אַחַת הִוא לְךָ אָבִי בָּרֲכֵנִי גַם אָנִי אָבִי וַיִּשָּׂא עֵשָׂו קֹלוֹ וַיֵּבְךְּ:

Have you [but] one blessing: The“hey” [in הַבִרָכָה] indicates an interrogative expression, as in (Num. 13:19):“are they in open cities (הַבְּמַחֲנַיִם) ?” ;“is it fat (הַשְּׁמֵנָה) ?” ; (II Sam. 3:33):“[Should Abner die] like the death of (הַכְּמוֹת) a wicked man?”

הברכה אחת: ה"א זו משמשת לשון תמיה, כמו (במדבר יג יט) הבמחנים, (במדבר יג כ) השמנה היא, (ש"ב ג לג) הכמות נבל:

39. And his father Isaac answered and said to him, "Behold, your dwelling place shall be the fat places of the earth and of the dew of the heaven from above.

לט. וַיַּעַן יִצְחָק אָבִיו וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו הִנֵּה מִשְׁמַנֵּי הָאָרֶץ יִהְיֶה מוֹשָׁבֶךָ וּמִטַּל הַשָּׁמַיִם מֵעָל:

Behold…the fat places of the earth: This is the part of Italy belonging to Greece (from Gen. Rabbah 67:6).

משמני הארץ וגו': זו איטליאה של יון:

40. And you shall live by your sword, and you shall serve your brother, and it will be, when you grieve, that you will break his yoke off your neck."

מ. וְעַל חַרְבְּךָ תִחְיֶה וְאֶת אָחִיךָ תַּעֲבֹד וְהָיָה כַּאֲשֶׁר תָּרִיד וּפָרַקְתָּ עֻלּוֹ מֵעַל צַוָּארֶךָ:

And…by your sword: וְעַל חַרְבּְ is the same as בְּחַרְבּְ [by your sword]. Sometimes עַל takes the place of the letter “beth,” as in (Ezek. 33:26);“You stood by your sword (עַל חַרְבְּכֶם),” [which is the same as] בְּחַרְבְּכֶם (Exod. 6:26);“by their hosts (עַל צִבְאוֹתָם)” [is the same as] בְּצִבְאוֹתָם.

ועל חרבך: כמו בחרבך, יש על שהוא במקום אות ב', כמו (יחזקאל לג כו) עמדתם על חרבכם בחרבכם, (שמות ו כו) על צבאותם בצבאותם:

and it will be, when you grieve: [תָּרִיד] is an expression of pain, as in (Ps. 55:3):“I will lament (אָרִיד) in my speech” ; i.e., when the Israelites will transgress the Torah, and you will have cause to grieve about the blessings that he took, “you will break his yoke,” etc. [From Targum Onkelos]

והיה כאשר תריד: לשון צער, כמו (תהלים נה ג) אריד בשיחי, כלומר כשיעברו ישראל את התורה, ויהיה לך פתחון פה להצטער על הברכות שנטל, ופרקת עלו וגו':

41. And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing that his father had blessed him, and Esau said to himself, "Let the days of mourning for my father draw near, I will then kill my brother Jacob. "

מא. וַיִּשְׂטֹם עֵשָׂו אֶת יַעֲקֹב עַל הַבְּרָכָה אֲשֶׁר בֵּרֲכוֹ אָבִיו וַיֹּאמֶר עֵשָׂו בְּלִבּוֹ יִקְרְבוּ יְמֵי אֵבֶל אָבִי וְאַהַרְגָה אֶת יַעֲקֹב אָחִי:

Let the days of mourning for my father draw near: As its apparent meaning,“that I should not grieve my father,” and there are various Midrashic explanations.

יקרבו ימי אבל אבי: כמשמעו, שלא אצער את אבא. ומדרש אגדה לכמה פנים יש:

42. And Rebecca was told of the words of Esau, her elder son, and she sent and called Jacob, her younger son, and she said to him, "Behold, your brother Esau regrets [his relationship] to you [and wishes] to kill you.

מב. וַיֻּגַּד לְרִבְקָה אֶת דִּבְרֵי עֵשָׂו בְּנָהּ הַגָּדֹל וַתִּשְׁלַח וַתִּקְרָא לְיַעֲקֹב בְּנָהּ הַקָּטָן וַתֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו הִנֵּה עֵשָׂו אָחִיךָ מִתְנַחֵם לְךָ לְהָרְגֶךָ:

And Rebecca was told of: She was told by Divine Inspiration what Esau was thinking in his heart. [From Gen. Rabbah 67:9]

ויגד לרבקה: ברוח הקודש הוגד לה מה שעשו מהרהר בלבו:

regrets [his relationship] to you: Heb. מִתְנַחֵם. He regrets the brotherly relationship, to consider other [than brotherly] thoughts, to behave towards you as a stranger and to kill you. The Midrash Aggadah (Gen. Rabbah 67:9), however, explains [it as an expression of consolation]: In his eyes, you are already dead, and he has drunk a cup of consolation [a cup of wine customarily drunk in the house of mourning] over you. But according to its simple meaning, it is an expression of consolation. By killing you he consoles himself about [losing] the blessings (Tanchuam Buber, Vayetzei 1).

מתנחם לך: נחם על האחוה לחשוב מחשבה אחרת להתנכר לך ולהרגך. ומדרש אגדה כבר אתה מת בעיניו ושתה עליך כוס של תנחומים. ולפי פשוטו לשון תנחומים, מתנחם הוא על הברכות בהריגתך:

43. And now, my son, hearken to my voice, and arise, flee to my brother Laban, to Haran.

מג. וְעַתָּה בְנִי שְׁמַע בְּקֹלִי וְקוּם בְּרַח לְךָ אֶל לָבָן אָחִי חָרָנָה:

44. And you shall dwell with him for a few days until your brother's wrath has subsided.

מד. וְיָשַׁבְתָּ עִמּוֹ יָמִים אֲחָדִים עַד אֲשֶׁר תָּשׁוּב חֲמַת אָחִיךָ:

a few days: Heb. אִחָדִים, few.

אחדים: מועטים:

45. Until your brother's rage subsides from you, and he forgets what you did to him, and I will send and bring you from there. Why should I be bereft of both of you on one day?"

מה. עַד שׁוּב אַף אָחִיךָ מִמְּךָ וְשָׁכַח אֵת אֲשֶׁר עָשִׂיתָ לּוֹ וְשָׁלַחְתִּי וּלְקַחְתִּיךָ מִשָּׁם לָמָה אֶשְׁכַּל גַּם שְׁנֵיכֶם יוֹם אֶחָד:

Why should I be bereft: Heb. אֶשְׁכַּל. I will be bereft of both of you. [This teaches that] one who buries his children is called שָׁכוּל, bereft. And so, concerning Jacob, it is said (below 43:14):“As I am bereft (שָׁכֹלְתִּי), I shall be bereft (שָׁכָלְתּי).”

למה אשכל: אהיה שכולה משניכם. הקובר את בניו קרוי שכול. וכן ביעקב אמר (להלן מג יד) כאשר שכלתי שכלתי:

of both of you: If he rises up against you and you kill him, his sons will rise up and kill you. And the Divine Spirit poured itself upon her and she prophesied that they would die on the same day, as is delineated in the chapter entitled הַמְּקַנֵּא לְאִשְׁתּוֹ (Sotah 13a).

גם שניכם: אם יקום עליך ואתה תהרגנו יעמדו בניו ויהרגוך, ורוח הקדש נזרקה בה ונתנבאה שביום אחד ימותו, כמו שמפורש בפרק המקנא לאשתו (סוטה יג א):

46. And Rebecca said to Isaac, "I am disgusted with my life because of the daughters of Heth. If Jacob takes a wife of the daughters of Heth like these, from the daughters of the land, of what use is life to me?"

מו. וַתֹּאמֶר רִבְקָה אֶל יִצְחָק קַצְתִּי בְחַיַּי מִפְּנֵי בְּנוֹת חֵת אִם לֹקֵחַ יַעֲקֹב אִשָּׁה מִבְּנוֹת חֵת כָּאֵלֶּה מִבְּנוֹת הָאָרֶץ לָמָּה לִּי חַיִּים:

I am disgusted with my life: Heb. קַצְתִּי, I am disgusted with my life.

קצתי בחיי: מאסתי בחיי:

Chapter 28

1. And Isaac called Jacob and blessed him, and he commanded him and said to him, "You shall not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan.

א. וַיִּקְרָא יִצְחָק אֶל יַעֲקֹב וַיְבָרֶךְ אֹתוֹ וַיְצַוֵּהוּ וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ לֹא תִקַּח אִשָּׁה מִבְּנוֹת כְּנָעַן:

2. Arise, go to Padan aram, to the house of Bethuel, your mother's father, and take yourself from there a wife of the daughters of Laban, your mother's brother.

ב. קוּם לֵךְ פַּדֶּנָה אֲרָם בֵּיתָה בְתוּאֵל אֲבִי אִמֶּךָ וְקַח לְךָ מִשָּׁם אִשָּׁה מִבְּנוֹת לָבָן אֲחִי אִמֶּךָ:

to Padan: Heb. פַּדֶּנָה like לְפַדָּן. [From Targum Onkelos]

פדנה: כמו לפדן:

to the house of Bethuel: Heb. בֵּיתָה to the house of (לְבֵית) Bethuel [Targum Onkelos]. Any word that requires a “lamed” at the beginning may take a“hey” at the end instead. [From Yev. 13b] 3.

ביתה בתואל: לבית בתואל. כל תיבה שצריכה למ"ד בתחלתה הטיל לה ה"א בסופה:

3. And may the Almighty God bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, and you shall become an assembly of peoples.

ג. וְאֵל שַׁדַּי יְבָרֵךְ אֹתְךָ וְיַפְרְךָ וְיַרְבֶּךָ וְהָיִיתָ לִקְהַל עַמִּים:

And…the Almighty God: Heb. שַׁדַּי. May He Who has enough (שֶׁדָּי) blessings for those who are blessed from His mouth, bless you.

ואל שדי: מי שדי בברכותיו למתברכין מפיו יברך אותך:

4. And may He give you the blessing of Abraham, to you and to your seed with you, that you may inherit the land of your sojournings, which God gave to Abraham."

ד. וְיִתֶּן לְךָ אֶת בִּרְכַּת אַבְרָהָם לְךָ וּלְזַרְעֲךָ אִתָּךְ לְרִשְׁתְּךָ אֶת אֶרֶץ מְגֻרֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר נָתַן אֱלֹהִים לְאַבְרָהָם:

the blessing of Abraham: that He said to him (above 12:2): “And I will make you into a great nation” ; (above 22:18): “[And all the nations of the world] will bless themselves with your seed.” May those aforementioned blessings be for you. May that nation and that blessed seed emanate from you. [From Tanchuma, Vezoth Haberachah 1]

את ברכת אברהם: שאמר לו (לעיל יב ב) ואעשך לגוי גדול, (שם כב יח) והתברכו בזרעך. יהיו אותן ברכות האמורות בשבילך, ממך יצא אותו הגוי ואותו הזרע המבורך:

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Daily Tehillim: Psalms Chapter 120 ~ 139

Chapter 120

This psalm rebukes slanderers, describing how the deadly effect of slander reaches even further than weapons.

1. A song of ascents. I have called out to the Lord in my distress, and He answered me.

2. O Lord, rescue my soul from the lips of falsehood, from a deceitful tongue.

3. What can He give you, and what [further restraint] can He add to you, O deceitful tongue?

4. [You resemble] the sharp arrows of a mighty one, and the coals of broom-wood.1

5. Woe unto me that I sojourned among Meshech, that I dwelt beside the tents of Kedar.

6. Too long has my soul dwelt among those who hate peace.

7. I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war.

Chapter 121

This psalm alludes to the Lower Paradise, from which one ascends to the Higher Paradise. It also speaks of how God watches over us.

1. A song of ascents. I lift my eyes to the mountains-from where will my help come?

2. My help will come from the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth.

3. He will not let your foot falter; your guardian does not slumber.

4. Indeed, the Guardian of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps.

5. The Lord is your guardian; the Lord is your protective shade at your right hand.

6. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.

7. The Lord will guard you from all evil; He will guard your soul.

8. The Lord will guard your going and your coming from now and for all time.

Chapter 122

The psalmist sings the praises of Jerusalem and tells of the miracles that happened there.

1. A song of ascents by David. I rejoiced when they said to me, "Let us go to the House of the Lord.”

2. Our feet were standing within your gates, O Jerusalem;

3. Jerusalem that is built like a city in which [all Israel] is united together.

4. For there the tribes went up, the tribes of God-as enjoined upon Israel-to offer praise to the Name of the Lord.

5. For there stood the seats of justice, the thrones of the house of David.

6. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem; may those who love you have peace.

7. May there be peace within your walls, serenity within your mansions.

8. For the sake of my brethren and friends, I ask that there be peace within you.

9. For the sake of the House of the Lord our God, I seek your well-being.

Chapter 123

The psalmist laments the length of time we have already suffered in exile.

1. A song of ascents. To You have I lifted my eyes, You Who are enthroned in heaven.

2. Indeed, as the eyes of servants are turned to the hand of their masters, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so are our eyes turned to the Lord our God, until He will be gracious to us.

3. Be gracious to us, Lord, be gracious to us, for we have been surfeited with humiliation.

4. Our soul has been overfilled with the derision of the complacent, with the scorn of the arrogant.

Chapter 124

1. A song of ascents by David. Were it not for the Lord Who was with us-let Israel declare-

2. were it not for the Lord Who was with us when men rose up against us,

3. then they would have swallowed us alive in their burning rage against us.

4. Then the waters would have inundated us, the torrent would have swept over our soul;

5. then the raging waters would have surged over our soul.

6. Blessed is the Lord, Who did not permit us to be prey for their teeth.

7. Our soul is like a bird which has escaped from the fowler's snare; the snare broke and we escaped.

8. Our help is in the Name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

Chapter 125

1. A song of ascents. Those who trust in the Lord are as Mount Zion which never falters, but abides forever.

2. Mountains surround Jerusalem, and the Lord surrounds His people from this time and forever.

3. For the rod of wickedness will never come to rest upon the lot of the righteous; therefore the righteous need not stretch their hand to iniquity.

4. Be beneficent, O Lord, to the good and to those who are upright in their hearts.

5. But as for those that turn to their perverseness, may the Lord lead them with the workers of iniquity. Peace be upon Israel.

Chapter 126

The psalmist speaks of the future, comparing our Divine service in exile to one who sows arid land, then cries and begs God to send rain upon it so that the seed not be wasted. When he merits to reap the crop, he offers thanks to God.

1. A song of ascents. When the Lord will return the exiles of Zion, we will have been like dreamers.

2. Then our mouth will be filled with laughter, and our tongue with songs of joy; then will they say among the nations, "The Lord has done great things for these.”

3. The Lord has done great things for us; we were joyful.

4. Lord, return our exiles as streams to arid soil.

5. Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.

6. He goes along weeping, carrying the bag of seed; he will surely return with songs of joy, carrying his sheaves.

Chapter 127

King David instructs his generation, and especially his son Solomon, to be sure that all one's actions be for the sake of Heaven. He also criticizes those who toil day and night in pursuit of a livelihood.

1. A song of ascents for Solomon. If the Lord does not build a house, then its builders labor upon it in vain. If the Lord will not guard a city, the vigilance of its watchman is in vain.

2. It is in vain for you, you who rise early, who sit up late, and who eat the bread of tension, for in fact He gives His loved ones sleep.

3. Behold, the heritage of the Lord is children; the fruit of the womb is a reward.

4. As arrows in the hand of a mighty man, so are the children of youth.

5. Fortunate is the man who has his quiver full of them; they will not find themselves shamed when they speak with enemies in public places.

Chapter 128

This psalm extols one who enjoys the fruits of his own labor, avoiding theft and deception, even refusing gifts. It also describes behavior appropriate to the God-fearing.

1. A song of ascents. Fortunate is every man who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways.

2. When you eat of the labor of your hands, you will be happy, and you will have goodness.

3. Your wife will be like a fruitful vine in the inner chambers of your house; your children will be like olive saplings around your table.

4. Behold, so will be blessed the man who fears the Lord.

5. May the Lord bless you out of Zion, and may you see the goodness of Jerusalem all the days of your life.

6. And may you see children [born] to your children; peace upon Israel.

Chapter 129

The psalmist laments the troubles of Israel.

1. A song of ascents. Much have they persecuted me from my youth on. Let Israel declare it now-

2. "Much have they persecuted me from my youth on, [but] they have not prevailed against me.”

3. The plowmen plowed upon my back; they wished to make their furrow long.

4. But the Lord is just; He cut the cords of the lawless.

5. They will be humiliated and will be turned back, all the haters of Zion.

6. They will be as grass upon the rooftops that withers before one plucks it,

7. wherewith the reaper has never filled his hand, nor the sheaf-binder his arm;

8. and of which the passers-by never have said: "The blessing of the Lord be upon you; we bless you in the name of the Lord."

Chapter 130

The psalmist prays for an end to this long exile.

1. A song of ascents. Out of the depths I call to You, O Lord.

2. My Lord, hearken to my voice; let Your ears be attentive to the sound of my pleas.

3. God, if You were to preserve iniquities, my Lord, who could survive?

4. But forgiveness is with You, that You may be held in awe.

5. I hope in the Lord; my soul hopes, and I long for His word.

6. My soul yearns for the Lord more than those awaiting the morning wait for the morning.

7. Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord there is kindness; with Him there is abounding deliverance.

8. And He will redeem Israel from all its iniquities.

Chapter 131

In this prayer, David declares that never in the course of his life was he haughty, nor did he pursue greatness or worldly pleasures.

1. A song of ascents, by David. O Lord, my heart was not proud, nor were my eyes haughty; I did not seek matters that were too great and too wondrous for me.

2. Surely I put my soul at peace and soothed it like a weaned child with his mother; my soul was like a weaned child.

3. Let Israel hope in the Lord from this time forth and forever.

Chapter 132

David composed this psalm while he and the elders of Israel wore sackcloth, in mourning over the plague that had descended upon the land, and their being distant from the Holy Temple. David therefore offers intense prayers, entreating God to remember the hardship and sacrifice he endured for the sake of the Temple.

1. A song of ascents. O Lord, remember unto David all his suffering,

2. how he swore to the Lord, and vowed to the Mighty Power of Jacob:

3. "I will not enter into the tent of my house; I will not go up into the bed that is spread for me;

4. I will not give sleep to my eyes, nor slumber to my eyelids;

5. until I will have found a place for the Lord, a resting place for the Mighty Power of Jacob.”

6. Lo, we heard of it in Ephrath; we found it in the field of the forest.

7. We will come to His resting places; we will prostrate ourselves at His footstool.

8. Ascend, O Lord, to Your resting place, You and the Ark of Your might.

9. May Your priests clothe themselves in righteousness, and may Your pious ones sing joyous songs.

10. For the sake of David Your servant, turn not away the face of Your anointed.

11. For the Lord has sworn to David a truth from which He will never retreat: "From the fruit of your womb will I set for you upon the throne.

12. If your sons will keep My covenant and this testimony of mine which I will teach them, then their sons, too, will sit on the throne for you until the end of time.

13. For the Lord has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His habitation.

14. This is My resting place to the end of time. Here will I dwell, for I have desired it.

15. I will abundantly bless her sustenance; I will satisfy her needy with bread.

16. I will clothe her priests with salvation, and her pious ones will sing joyous songs.

17. There I will cause David's power to flourish; there I have prepared a lamp for My anointed.

18. His enemies will I clothe with shame, but upon him, his crown will blossom."

Chapter 133

1. A song of ascents, by David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is when brothers dwell together.

2. Like the precious oil [placed] upon the head, flowing [in abundance] down the beard, the beard of Aaron which rests upon his garments.

3. Like the dew of Hermon which comes down upon the mountains of Zion, for there the Lord has commanded blessing, life unto eternity.

Chapter 134

The psalmist exhorts the scholarly and pious to rise from their beds at night, and go to the House of God.

1. A song of ascents. Behold: Bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord who stand in the House of the Lord in the nights.

2. Lift up your hands in holiness and bless the Lord.

3. May the Lord, Who makes heaven and earth, bless you from Zion.

Chapter 135

1. Praise the Lord! Praise the Name of the Lord; offer praise, you servants of the Lord-

2. who stand in the House of the Lord, in the courtyards of the House of our God.

3. Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good; sing to His Name, for He is pleasant.

4. For God has chosen Jacob for Himself, Israel as His beloved treasure.

5. For I know that the Lord is great, our Master is greater than all supernal beings.

6. All that the Lord desired He has done, in the heavens and on earth, in the seas and the depths.

7. He causes mists to rise from the ends of the earth; He makes lightning for the rain; He brings forth the wind from His vaults.

8. It was He who struck down the firstborn of Egypt, of man and beast.

9. He sent signs and wonders into the midst of Egypt, on Pharaoh and on all his servants.

10. It was He who struck down many nations, and slew mighty kings:

11. Sichon, king of the Amorites; Og, king of Bashan; and all the kingdoms of Canaan.

12. And He gave their lands as a heritage, a heritage to His people Israel.

13. Lord, Your Name is forever; Lord, Your remembrance is throughout all generations.

14. Indeed, the Lord will judge on behalf of His people, and have compassion on His servants.

15. The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the product of human hands.

16. They have a mouth, but cannot speak; they have eyes, but cannot see;

17. they have ears, but cannot hear; nor is there breath in their mouth.

18. Like them will their makers become-all who trust in them.

19. House of Israel, bless the Lord; House of Aaron, bless the Lord;

20. House of Levi, bless the Lord; you who fear the Lord, bless the Lord.

21. Blessed is the Lord from Zion, who dwells in Jerusalem. Praise the Lord!

Chapter 136

This psalm contains twenty-six verses, corresponding to the twenty-six generations between the creation of the world and the giving of the Torah.

1. Praise the Lord for He is good, for His kindness is forever.

2. Praise the God of the supernal beings, for His kindness is forever.

3. Praise the Master of the heavenly hosts, for His kindness is forever.

4. Who alone performs great wonders, for His kindness is forever.

5. Who makes the heavens with understanding, for His kindness is forever.

6. Who spreads forth the earth above the waters, for His kindness is forever.

7. Who makes the great lights, for His kindness is forever.

8. The sun to rule by day, for His kindness is forever.

9. The moon and stars to rule by night, for His kindness is forever.

10. Who struck Egypt through its firstborn, for His kindness is forever.

11. And brought Israel out of their midst, for His kindness is forever.

12. With a strong hand and with an outstretched arm, for His kindness is forever.

13. Who split the Sea of Reeds into sections, for His kindness is forever.

14. And brought Israel across it, for His kindness is forever.

15. And cast Pharaoh and his army into the Sea of Reeds, for His kindness is forever.

16. Who led His people through the desert, for His kindness is forever;

17. Who struck down great kings, for His kindness is forever.

18. And slew mighty kings, for His kindness is forever.

19. Sichon, king of the Amorites, for His kindness is forever.

20. And Og, king of Bashan, for His kindness is forever.

21. And gave their land as a heritage, for His kindness is forever.

22. A heritage to Israel His servant, for His kindness is forever.

23. Who remembered us in our humiliation, for His kindness is forever.

24. And redeemed us from our oppressors, for His kindness is forever.

25. Who gives food to all flesh, for His kindness is forever.

26. Praise the God of heaven, for His kindness is forever.

Chapter 137

Referring to the time of the destruction of the Temple, this psalm tells of when Nebuchadnezzar would ask the Levites to sing in captivity as they had in the Temple, to which they would reply, "How can we sing the song of God upon alien soil?" They were then comforted by Divine inspiration.

1. By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat and wept as we remembered Zion.

2. There, upon the willows, we hung our harps.

3. For there our captors demanded of us songs, and those who scorned us-rejoicing, [saying,] "Sing to us of the songs of Zion.”

4. How can we sing the song of the Lord on alien soil?

5. If I forget you, Jerusalem, let my right hand forget [its dexterity].

6. Let my tongue cleave to my palate if I will not remember you, if I will not bring to mind Jerusalem during my greatest joy!

7. Remember, O Lord, against the Edomites the day of [the destruction of] Jerusalem, when they said, "Raze it, raze it to its very foundation!”

8. O Babylon, who is destined to be laid waste, happy is he who will repay you in retribution for what you have inflicted on us.

9. Happy is he who will seize and crush your infants against the rock!

Chapter 138

David offers awesome praises to God for His kindness to him, and for fulfilling His promise to grant him kingship.

1. By David. I will thank You with all my heart, in the presence of princes I shall praise You.

2. I will bow toward Your Holy Sanctuary, and praise Your Name for Your kindness and for Your truth; for You have exalted Your word above all Your Names.

3. On the day that I called out You answered me, You emboldened me, [You put] strength in my soul.

4. Lord, all the kings of the land will give thanks to You when they hear the words of Your mouth.

5. And they will sing of the Lord's ways, for the glory of the Lord is great.

6. For though the Lord is exalted, He sees the lowly; the High One castigates from afar.

7. If I walk in the midst of distress, keep me alive; against the wrath of my enemies stretch out Your hand, and let Your right hand deliver me.

8. Lord, complete [Your kindness] on my behalf. Lord, Your kindness is forever, do not forsake the work of Your hands.

Chapter 139

A most prominent psalm that guides man in the ways of God as no other in all of the five books of Tehillim. Fortunate is he who recites it daily.

1. For the Conductor, by David, a psalm. O Lord, You have probed me, and You know.

2. You know my sitting down and my standing up; You perceive my thought from afar.

3. You encircle my going about and my lying down; You are familiar with all my paths.

4. For there was not yet a word on my tongue-and behold, Lord, You knew it all.

5. You have besieged me front and back, You have laid Your hand upon me.

6. Knowledge [to escape You] is beyond me; it is exalted, I cannot know it.

7. Where can I go [to escape] Your spirit? And where can I flee from Your presence?

8. If I ascend to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in the grave, behold, You are there.

9. Were I to take up wings as the dawn and dwell in the furthest part of the sea,

10. there, too, Your hand would guide me; Your right hand would hold me.

11. Were I to say, "Surely the darkness will shadow me," then the night would be as light around me.

12. Even the darkness obscures nothing from You; and the night shines like the day-the darkness is as light.

13. For You created my mind; You covered me in my mother's womb.

14. I will thank You, for I was formed in an awesome and wondrous way; unfathomable are Your works, though my soul perceives much.

15. My essence was not hidden from You even while I was born in concealment, formed in the depths of the earth.

16. Your eyes beheld my raw form; all [happenings] are inscribed in Your book, even those to be formed in future days-to Him they are the same.

17. How precious are Your thoughts to me, O God! How overwhelming, [even] their beginnings!

18. Were I to count them, they would outnumber the sand, even if I were to remain awake and always with You.

19. O that You would slay the wicked, O God, and men of blood [to whom I say], "Depart from me!”

20. They exalt You for wicked schemes, Your enemies raise [You] for falsehood.

21. Indeed, I hate those who hate You, Lord; I contend with those who rise up against You.

22. I hate them with the utmost hatred; I regard them as my own enemies.

23. Search me, Lord, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts.

24. See if there is a vexing way in me, then lead me in the way of the world.

~~~~~~~

Tanya: Kuntres Acharon, Essay 1 & Kuntres Acharon, Essay 2

Kuntres Acharon, Essay 1

Kuntres Acharon, Essay One

The contents of this Kuntres Acharon al Kamah Perakim (“Later Booklet on Several Chapters”) are not near as homoeneous as one might expect.

The ninth printing1 of the Tanya, which included Iggeret HaKodesh and Kuntres Acharon for the second time, was introduced by an “Approbation of the ... sons of the illustrious author.”2 This Approbation describes Kuntres Acharon as a work based “on certain chapters, which he wrote when he composed the Sefer Likutei Amarim” (i.e., the first part of Tanya). It is described as consisting of “profound discussions and insights in passages in the Zohar, Etz Chayim and Pri Etz Chayim, which appear to contradict one another, and in his understanding spirit [the Alter Rebbe] resolves each passage according to its context as explained in Likutei Amarim.”

As the Rebbe notes, however, close to half of the essays printed in current editions under the heading of Kuntres Acharon, beginning with Essay 6, appear to be letters of the Alter Rebbe that are quite unconnected with matters discussed in Tanya, Zohar, Etz Chayim, etc., and hence, seemimgly out of place in Kuntres Acharon. And, indeed, when Iggeret HaKodesh and Kuntres Acharon were first included in Tanya (in the eighth edition; Koenigsburg, 1811), these essays were in fact not printed as part of Kuntres Acharon, but were grouped with Iggeret HaKodesh.

* * *

The first essay of Kuntres Acharon answers two questions:

(a) How does a Jew become connected with Supernal Wisdom (Chochmah of Atzilut) by reading the narratives of the Torah?

(b) What is meant by the statement of the Zohar that “thought accomplishes nothing”? (I.e., that if one merely thinks about words of Torah but does not articulate them vocally, he does not effect an “arousal from below” that elicits an “arousal from above.”)

As to question (a): We can readily understand how when a Jew studies the reasoning and the laws of the Torah he is connected with Supernal Wisdom, for the Torah is “G-d’s Will and Wisdom.” But what of the narrative passages? True enough, in addition to their truth as narrative (for3 “A verse never departs from its plain meaning”), these passages of course simultaneously allude to spiritual truths in the higher worlds. But if a reader knows nothing of this beyond the simple story, how is he thereby connected with Supernal Wisdom?

The Alter Rebbe answers this query by quoting Sefer HaKavanot of the AriZal, who states that at the very same moment at which a Jew is engaged in Torah in this world, the “likeness” of Supernal Man above (the source of the soul of this Jew) is also engaged in Torah. The source of this individual’s soul is thus bound up with Supernal Wisdom.

Now, this applies when this individual merely meditates upon words of Torah, in silence. When, however, he actually verbalizes them, then the sound of these words pierces the heavens, and ascends to the spiritual level to which that sound is related, i.e., the level which matches the level of service of the person involved. If he is a tzaddik who, like a chariot, has no independent will but waits to be steered by its Rider, then the sound of his Torah study rises to the World of Atzilut (as explained in Tanya, ch. 39); if he serves G‑d with intellectually-generated love and awe, the sound of his Torah study rises to the World of Beriah; if his love and awe of G‑d are innate, the sound of his Torah study rises to the World of Yetzirah (as explained in Tanya, ch. 16).

As to question (b), regarding the inability of unvoiced thought (on words of Torah) to elicit an illumination from above, the Alter Rebbe will presently explain that it is nevertheless expressly thought that can elevate one’s Torah study and one’s performance of the commandments to the higher realms.

This, however, appears to be contradicted by a teaching in the Zohar,4 that the kind of “arousal from below” that draws down the reciprocal “arousal from above,” is effected specifically by “deed and speech,” as distinct from unvoiced thought.

The Alter Rebbe therefore clarifies: It is true that the Zohar here teaches that thought alone cannot draw down the flow of Divine light. That is why, even when one serves G‑d with love and fear through the spiritual toil of the soul, he will not have fulfilled his obligation to perform the accompanying mitzvah unless these spiritual emotions find simultaneous expression in actual deeds or words (cf. Tanya, ch. 35). For the soul descended into this world in order to draw down Divine light, and thereby to refine and rectify the body and the animal soul. (The Divine soul itself is by definition not in need of rectification.) And it is only through “deed and speech” — the actual performance of mitzvot or articulated Torah study, for5 “the movement of the lips is also a [minor] deed” — that one draws the Divine light down into this world.

However, when it comes to the separate task of elevating one’s Torah study and performance of the commandments, this is accomplished specifically by means of positive thoughts, which include one’s devout intent (kavanah), and one’s love and awe of G‑d.

Examine6 Likkutei Amarim, ch. 40

The Alter Rebbe explained in ch. 407 that the love and fear of G‑d are mere “wings”.8 Though wings enable a bird to fly aloft, they are not its essence. Indeed, even “if its wings were removed, [a bird] is kosher,”9 so long as its head and body are intact.

So, too, Supernal Unions (yichudim) are effected through Torah and mitzvot themselves. Love and awe, which are their wings, merely elevate the Torah and mitzvot to that spiritual level where a particular union is to take place. It is at that level that there is revealed within one’s Torah and mitzvot an infinite Divine illumination that cannot be revealed in this physical world.

Thus, on one hand we say that love and fear do not bring about a Supernal Union, for they are mere “thought” and intent. On the other hand, we also say that it is specifically through one’s intent that one’s Torah and mitzvot are elevated to a height they could never ascend to unaided; once there, they bring about a Supernal Union and its resultant diffusion of Divine light.

להבין איך הקורא בסיפורי מעשיות שבתורה, הוא מקושר בחכמה עילאה

To understand how a person reading narratives in the Torah becomes connected with Chochmah Ila’ah (“Supernal Wisdom”):

When a Jew studies Torah intellectually, it stands to reason that he is then bound up with Supernal Wisdom — the Sefirah of Chochmah (the loftiest Divine emanation) in the World of Atzilut — for Torah law is “G‑d’s Will and Wisdom”; the rationale underlying a law is G‑d’s wisdom, while the ruling itself is G‑d’s will.

This is explained in ch. 5 of Tanya: “It so arose in His will that if, for example, Reuven would claim thus and Shimon thus, such and such should be the verdict between them.” Even if this litigation should never come to pass, still it is G‑d’s will that in such an instance the verdict should be such and such — in accordance with His will. The very knowledge of the ruling thus makes one aware of G‑d’s will.

Suppose, however, that instead of studying legal issues one merely reads the narratives of the Torah. While it is true that these narratives allude to spiritual matters in the higher worlds,10 yet since he perceives nothing beneath their seemingly simplistic surface, how is he thereby connected with Supernal Wisdom?

When, for example, the Alter Rebbe looked at the verse,11 “And Jacob kissed Rachel and lifted up his eyes and wept,” he saw12 that Jacob, who represents the attribute of Mercy of Atzilut, arouses compassion from the Supernal Source of Mercy upon Rachel, who personifies Malchut of Atzilut, the fount of all souls.

However, when one is unaware of the inner meaning of this verse, and merely follows the simple story, how is he then bound to Supernal Wisdom?

על פי מה שכתוב בכוונות, דף ט״ז עמוד ב׳: כמו שהאדם עוסק למטה, כך דיוקן האדם העליון למעלה כו׳

[This matter may be understood] in the light of what is written in the Kavanot, p. 16b13 — that just as a man is engaged [in Torah study] below, so too is the likeness of the Supernal Man [engaged in Torah study] above.

As the Alter Rebbe will soon explain, this “likeness” refers to the source of a man’s soul, which is rooted in the Sefirot above. This is known as Supernal Man, for in the Kabbalah a complete configuration — a partzuf (lit., “visage”) of ten intellective and emotive Divine Sefirot — is referred to as a “Man”.14 Supernal Man occupies Himself in Torah above, at the same time that mortal man does so below. When one is engaged in Torah, be it even in the narratives of the Torah, he is thus connected with Supernal Wisdom, inasmuch as his “likeness” above is bound up with Supernal Wisdom.

According to this explanation, however, he is connected with Supernal Wisdom only by virtue of his connection with his likeness above, and not through his actual study. The Alter Rebbe therefore now goes on to state that this is so only when his study of the Written Torah remains in the realm of thought. If, instead, the individual verbalizes the words audibly, the very sound of his voice enables the letters here below to ascend even to the highest of levels, the World of Atzilut.

כן יש לומר, בהרהור באותיות הכתובות

This [vicarious connection] applies [only] when one is thinking about the written letters [of the Torah’s narratives].

אבל הדבור, יש לומר דבוקע וסליק לאצילות ממש

But as to articulated speech, we may say that it pierces and ascends to the actual [World of] Atzilut;

The Alter Rebbe here seeks to distinguish between “the actual World of Atzilut,” and the highest level (the “relative Atzilut”) within each of the lower worlds. As explained above, the uttered words of a consummate tzaddik — like the rest of his Torah and mitzvot — ascend to the actual World of Atzilut.

או לבריאה, בדחילו ורחימו שכליים

alternatively, [the articulated speech of one’s Torah study rises] to Beriah, the world of comprehension, when impelled by intellectually-generated love and fear (i.e., a love and fear of G‑d that result from comprehending Him);

או ליצירה, בדחילו ורחימו טבעיים

or else [this speech rises] to Yetzirah, the world of emotions, when motivated by the innate awe and love of G‑d that are the heritage of every Jew.

This refers to the level of “concealed love” (ahavah mesuteret) that also includes fear.

ובמקרא

And through Scripture, i.e., when its words are merely uttered out of an acceptanc3e of G‑d’s yoke, without any of the above three levels of motivation,

סליק מעולם הזה ליו״ד ספירות דעשיה, משום דבקע אוירין וכו׳

[this speech] rises from This World to the Ten Sefirot of Asiyah, the level that relates to Torah and mitzvot that are performed merely out of acceptance of G‑d’s yoke,15 for “it pierces the atmospheres16...” between physical and spiritual Asiyah.

מה שאין כן בהרהור, אלא הדיוקן, שהוא שרש נשמתו וכו׳

In contrast, one’s [unvoiced] thought [does not ascend to the higher worlds; it affects] only the “likeness” which is the source of his soul..., and which at that time is also engaged above in Torah, thereby connecting him with Supernal Wisdom.

ומה שכתוב בזהר, חלק ג׳ דף ק״ה, דהרהור לא עביד מידי כו׳

As to the statement in the Zohar, Vol. III, p. 105, that “thinking achieves nothing,...”

והיינו, אפילו לטב

i.e., not even a beneficial effect, if the “arousal from below” of deed or speech are lacking,

Speaking of thought, the Zohar there refers to improper thoughts that “achieve nothing.” For it is only when one actually speaks (and not merely thinks) of mundane matters on Shabbat17 that he causes a blemish in the spiritual realms, since his speech ascends aloft and introduces mundanity within the sanctity of Shabbat above. In the same way, the Alter Rebbe adds, thought alone — unless it is accompanied by words or deeds — has no positive effect above.

עיין שם, ובדף ל״א עמוד ב׳

examine closely there, as well as p. 31b.

For the Zohar says there that in order to receive the sanctity and joy of the Jewish festivals, there must first be an “arousal from below” through deed or speech. It then goes on to say that mundane talk during Shabbat will cause a blemish above, though not mundane thoughts.

We thus see that the Zohar is speaking of the inability of thought alone to produce either positive or negative effects.

The same is true of the statement in Zohar III, 31b, that a deed below inspires a deed above. A holy deed brings forth an arousal of holiness from above that descends upon the doer, while a deed stemming from impurity causes a spirit of impurity to descend upon him. The Zohar concludes there, that whatever depends upon action affects action, while whatever depends upon speech affects speech.

This, too, indicates that both a positive and a negative impact can be made only through action or speech, and not through disembodied thought alone.

Now, if thought alone “accomplishes nothing,” how does this square with the earlier statement that when one reads the narratives of the Torah, even if he does so only in his thought, he causes the “likeness” of Supernal Man to study Torah, and thereby the person involved is united with Supernal Wisdom?

The Alter Rebbe resolves this seeming contradiction as follows: The Zohar only means that thought has no effect in drawing down illumination from above: it is true that it is not an “arousal from below” that elicits an “arousal from above.” However, thought does have a vital effect above: one’s thought and intention are indispensable in elevating one’s Torah study and performance of the commandments, and in effecting the consequent Supernal Unions.

To return now to the above-quoted statement that “thinking accomplishes nothing”:

יש לומר דהיינו לאתערא לעילא, שיומשך משם לתתא

We may say, that this [disability] refers only to arousing a reaction Above, to call forth a downward flow [of Divine light];

רק מחשבתו נשארה שם

the thought that rises above simply remains there,

ומוסיפה שם אור גדול

greatly increasing the illumination there.

בתוספת וריבוי האור באצילות, על ידי מקרא ומצות מעשיות שבעשיה

[This] increased illumination in Atzilut is brought about through the verbal study of Scripture and the practice of active mitzvot in Asiyah,

שעיקר היחוד הוא למעלה

for the [consequent] Union takes place primarily above, within Atzilut.

רק הפירות בעולם הזה, על ידי המשכת אור מעט מזעיר למטה על ידי הדבור ומעשה

Only [its] fruits reach this world, through the illumination that is called forth in minute measure, here below, by speech and deed, that serve as an “arousal from below” to draw down the “arousal from above.”

מה שאין כן בהרהור, לא נמשך כלום

Through thinking [alone], however, nothing is called forth [below]: the above-mentioned increased illumination remains entirely above.

ולכן לא יצא ידי חבותו

Hence, if one merely thinks the words of the Shema and does not verbalize them vocally, he has not fulfilled his obligation

מה שירדה נשמתו לעולם הזה, רק להמשיך אורות עליונים למטה

for which his soul descended into This World: viz., only to draw supernal illuminations into the lower world.

כמו שכתוב בעץ חיים, שער כ״ו: להמשיך אור

In the words of Etz Chayim, Shaar 26, [the purpose of the soul’s descent is] “to call forth illumination.”

The G‑dly soul does not descend into this world for its own sake, for it is not in need of any rectification. Rather, it descends here in order to rectify and refine the body and the animal soul, by drawing supernal illumination down into this otherwise dark world.

אבל להעלות ממטה למעלה

But to elevate [one’s Torah and mitzvot] from below upward,

הוא דוקא על ידי מחשבה טובה

there must be “good thought” — the positive intent that stems from love and fear of G‑d,

דבלא דחילו ורחימו, לא פרחא לעילא

for without awe and love, [his divine service in Torah and mitzvot] does not fly upward.

וכמו שכתוב בשער הנבואה, פרק ב׳: והמחשבה טובה כו׳

As is stated in Shaar HaNevuah, sec. 2, “And the good thought [is that which raises Torah and mitzvot aloft].”

But here we appear to have a contradiction.

ומה שכתוב: דבקע רקיעין וכו׳

Now, we have an expression, quoted in the Zohar above, [that the sound of Torah study] “pierces firmaments...,”

והיינו, אפילו בלא דחילו ורחימו

and this is true even when [the sound of Torah study] is without awe and love,

במכל שכן מדברים בטלים

by a fortiori reasoning from the case of idle words,

If idle or mundane words spoken on the Sabbath ascend and cause a blemish above, surely holy words ascend, even when they are not accompanied by awe and love of G‑d.18

דמדה טובה, מרובה

since19 “the measure of good is more generous [than its opposite].”

How are we to reconcile this with the statement that “without awe and love one’s [Torah study] does not fly upward”?

The Alter Rebbe now answers:

היינו, רקיעין דוקא, שהן ההיכלות והבתים

This refers only to “firmaments”, meaning the chambers and abodes, i.e., the external aspects of Supernal Man,

ולא בגוף האדם העליון

but not the “body” of Supernal Man.

I.e., if one’s Torah study is not propelled by a love and awe of G‑d, it does not ascend to the “body” of Supernal Man, which comprises the Ten Sefirot of the world involved.

וכל שכן בנפש רוח ונשמה

It certainly [does not ascend] to the Nefesh, Ruach and Neshamah of Supernal Man, the light of Atzilut that illumines that world,

אפילו באדם דעשיה, שהן יו״ד ספירות, אורות וכלים

even not of the Supernal Man of Asiyah, meaning the Ten Sefirot, both its lights and vessels.

Without awe and love, one’s Torah study cannot ascend even to this level.

וזהו שכתוב בתקונים, דבלא דחילו ורחימו, לא יכלא לסלקא ולמיקם קדם ה׳ דוקא

This is the intention of the Tikkunim,20 that without fear and love it cannot ascend or stand before G‑d.

This means that it is capable of ascending to a higher world, but not before the G‑dliness of that world, i.e., the Sefirot of that world. In order for it to ascend there, there must be awe and love.

FOOTNOTES

1.Shklov, 1814; see the Bibliographical Listing by the Rebbe, reproduced (in Hebrew) in the Bi-Lingual Edition of Tanya, p. 714.

2.It appeared in the Shklov edition of 1814 for the first time. See its English translation in Vol. I of the present series, p. 10.

3.Shabbat 63a.

4.III, 105a and 31b.

5.Sanhedrin 65a.

6.Note of the Rebbe: “[Examine], not simply See.”

7.See Vol. II above, p. 558ff.

8.R. Chayim Vital, in Shaar HaYichudim, ch. 11.

9.Note of the Rebbe in He’arot veTikkunim: “In the Mishnah (Chullin 3:4) we find, ‘If its wings were broken....’ [From this we learn that the same law applies] ‘when its wings were removed’; see the Bach and Taz, Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah, beginning of sec. 53.”

10.Actually, this may be viewed the other way around: The real subject of such a narrative is a spiritual truth; this is echoed by the physical aspects of the corresponding episode as it took place below. In the words of Asarah Maamarot (Maamar Chikur Din 3:22), “The Torah speaks on high and hints at matters below.”

11.Bereishit 29:11.

12.Tanya, ch. 45.

13.I.e., Sefer HaKavanot of the AriZal (ed. Venice, 5380/1620).

14.Cf. Yechezkel 1:26.

15.Alternatively, it may be said that the degree of elevation varies with the subject of one’s study. If it is Kabbalah, which extends no further “down” than Atzilut, then one’s study is elevated as far “up” as Atzilut. If it is Talmud, which extends down to Beriah, then one’s study is elevated as far up as Beriah. If Mishnah, it is Yetzirah; if Scripture, it is Asiyah; — as the Alter Rebbe explains in the Note at the conclusion of ch. 40 in Tanya. The Alter Rebbe makes a point of noting there, that in fact all the above categories of Torah study belong in Atzilut, except that Scripture emanates all the way downward until Asiyah, Mishnah — only as far as until Yetzirah, and Talmud — until Beriah, while Kabbalah remains within the World of Atzilut. (See also Torah Or, p. 17a.)

16.Note of the Rebbe: “This expression is also found in Et’haleich [Liozna], [which is a book of discourses that includes these essays from Kuntres Acharon]. [However,] this warrants a critical comparison of early editions and manuscripts, for in many places (Tanya, ch. 40; Zohar III, as cited there; et al.), [the expression used is not ‘pierces atmospheres’ but ‘pierces] heavens.”’

17.Cf. Yeshayahu 58:13: “If you honor it by...refraining...from speaking [worldly] things....”

18.At this point, the standard edition of Kuntres Acharon interpolates a phrase in brackets [זה אינו, דגם שם יש איזו תאוה], followed by a publisher’s note that this phrase does not appear in certain manuscripts.

The interpolation means: “This is not the case, for there, too, there is some measure of desire.” In other words: The above proof, which relates to idle talk on Shabbat, does not withstand scrutiny, for there, too, there is some measure of desire. Since this motivating desire counts as a certain measure of spirituality, this speech is not an exclusively physical activity; if it were, it would not be able to ascend to a spiritual world.

19.Sotah 11a.

20.Tikkun 10, p. 25b.

Kuntres Acharon, Essay 2

עיין עץ חיים, שער הנקודות, שער ה׳, פרק ו׳

Examine the statement in Etz Chayim, Shaar HaNekudot, Shaar 8, ch. 6,

שאין החזרת פנים בפנים, כי אם על ידי מצות מעשיות דוקא

that there can be no “turning of face to face” except through mitzvot requiring action.

The text cited had previously discussed the stage of creation at which (i) the bracket of six Sefirot known collectively as Za (ז״א; Z’eir Anpin), and (ii) the Sefirah of Malchut,1 were first emanated and revealed (in the World of Atzilut) from Chochmah and Binah, their spiritual parents. Adam had not yet been created and hence the avodah of fulfilling mitzvot did not yet exist. At this stage, if Za and Malchut had united “face to face,” there would be an effusion of Divine energy from the innermost aspect of Za to the innermost aspect of Malchut. This, however, would enable the kelipot to receive more than their due share of life-giving influence from the source of holiness. The union was therefore merely “back to back,” i.e., only the external aspect of Za was drawn down to Malchut.

Only after Adam was created and performed mitzvot, effectively “trimming and hacking off the thorns,” i.e., limiting the nurture of kelipot, could Za and Malchut be united “face to face.”

In other words, Divinity can be revealed within this world (without any nurture being illegitimately diverted to the kelipot) only by means of mitzvot whose performance entails an actual deed.

וטעם הדבר

The reason for this, as given there in Etz Chayim,

כי על ידי מעשים טובים גורם זיווג העליון וכו׳

is that by means of good deeds one brings about a Supernal Union, causing Za and Malchut to turn “face to face.”

ולהבין אמאי מעשיות דוקא

Now, why only mitzvot involving action?

Why can the same result not be brought about by mitzvot fulfilled by thought and speech?

יובן ממה שכתוב בשער מ״ן ומ״ד

This may be understood in the light of what is written in [Etz Chayim,] Shaar Ma’n Uma’d,2

כי צריך תחלה להעלות מ״ן דנוקבא דז״א

that first, before the Supernal Union takes place, there must be an elevation of mayin nukvin (i.e., an arousal initiated by the recipient) from the nukva (i.e., the feminine element) of Za, viz., Malchut,

ומ״ן דנוקבא הן בחינת עשיה, כמו שכתוב שם, פרק א׳

and the mayin nukvin of nukva is the state of action, as explained there, in ch. 1.

In other words: The things of this world, whose source is the Sefirah of Malchut (which is the nukva of Za) must be elevated to their source in holiness. This can be accomplished only through mitzvot whose fulfillment requires actions performed with the material components of the world. This alone makes possible the Supernal Union which reveals Divinity within this world.

But how can it be ensured that no part of this revelation will leak to the kelipot (which are also known as chitzonim — lit., “extraneous forces”)?

והנה, המעשים טובים נקראים כסוח וקיצוץ הקוצים הנאחזים באחוריים

Good deeds are described as trimming and hacking off the thistles that attach themselves to the hinderpart,

שהן בחינת עשיה

which is the state of deed,

כמו שכתוב בשער מ״ז, פרק ה׳

as is written in [Etz Chayim,] Shaar 47, ch. 5.

It is the performance of specifically these commandments that hacks away the kelipot which, like the unchecked roots of thistles or weeds in a vineyard, would otherwise encroach on the life-giving waters and divert them from their intended destination.

והיינו, על ידי העלאת הטוב הגנוז בהם, המלובש במצות מעשיות

This [pruning is effected] by elevating the element of good that is concealed in them (i.e., in things of this world that are related to Asiyah) and that is enclothed in mitzvot of action,

למקורו, לקדושת האצילות שכבר הובררה

[elevating this element of good] to its source, to the sanctity of Atzilut that has already been refined.

The performance of practical mitzvot thus makes possible the purification and elevation of those physical things that are in need of this, by extracting the element of good that is within them and elevating it to holiness.

ומה שכתוב שם, שאדם הראשון תיקן גם כן על ידי תפלה

As to the statement there that Adam effected rectification (tikkun) through prayer as well, which would not appear to be a mitzvah requiring action,

היינו, על ידי אותיות הדבור, דעקימת שפתיו הוי מעשה

this means [that he did so] through uttering the letters of speech, i.e., not through the intent of prayer, but by the actual deed involved, for the movement of one’s lips is also deemed a deed.3

כי הן מנפש החיונית שבגוף ודמו, אשר שרשן מנוגה

For they — these utterances — derive from the vivifying soul which is in one’s body and blood, whose root (and life-force) is in [kelipat] nogah.

As the Alter Rebbe explains in ch. 37 of Tanya, one’s G-dly soul is incapable of uttering the words of Torah or prayer (which have to be sounded with the physical mouth, tongue and teeth), except through the agency of the vivifying soul that is invested in the body.

We see from the above that uttering the words of prayer can also elevate Ma’n from the nukva of Asiyah, just as is done by the practical mitzvot.

והנה הבירורים דעשיה עולין ליצירה על ידי שם ב״ן, ומיצירה לבריאה ולאצילות, כמו שכתוב בשער מ״ן, דרוש י״א, סימן ז׳

The acts of refinement of Asiyah that are accomplished through practical mitzvot ascend to Yetzirah by means of the Divine Name Ba’n, and from Yetzirah to Beriah and Atzilut, as noted in Shaar Ma’n, Derush 11, sec. 7.

ובזה יובן דהרהור לא עביד מידי

Thus we can understand why mere thought accomplishes nothing, as Essay 1 of Kuntres Acharon quotes above from the Zohar,

כי בלי העלאת מ״ן מהמלכים שבנוגה, אי אפשר להמשיך טיפין מלמעלה לזווג זו״ן

for unless mayin nukvin is elevated from the “kings of nogah,”4 it is impossible to draw forth drops from above to effect the union of Zu’n, an acronym for the above terms Za and nukva.

This elevation can be effected only through activity on the level of Asiyah, as stated above.

Za and Malchut can unite only if a degree of illumination that transcends them both, is drawn down upon them. To use a mortal analogy: Concerning the union of man and woman it is written,5 “Male and female did He create them, and G‑d blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply.”’ I.e., in order for their union to bear fruit, a blessing must first descend upon the partners from above. And these “drops” of blessing from a source in Divinity that transcends both Za and Malchut cannot be drawn forth unless mayin nukvin is aroused and elevated by the refinement of the materiality of kelipat nogah.

כי רוצה לינק מאמו, ולא להשפיע למטה

For [Za] desires to seek its nurture from its “mother”, i.e., from the Sefirah of Binah, rather than giving forth for the lower realms,

It is only through the elevation of Ma’n of nogah that a higher degree of illumination is drawn down within Za, causing it to desire to unite with the Sefirah beneath it, viz., Malchut.

כמו שכתוב בשער מ״ן, דרוש ב׳

as is written in [Etz Chayim,] Shaar Ma’n, Derush 2.

ועיין זהר, פרשת פקודי, דף רמ״ד, עמוד ב׳, דאית סדורא כו׳ לאסתכלא כו׳

Examine Zohar, Parshat Pekudei, p. 244b, which states that there is a mode...of gazing....

Just as there is a mode of verbalized prayer, there is also a mode of prayer with kavanah by means of which one meditates and attains infinite heights, as one gazes upon the glory of the King.

והן כוונות התפלה ויחודים עליונים, ליודעים ומשיגים לאסתכלא כו׳

This refers to the intentions (kavanot) in worship, and the supernal unions, for those who know and understand how to “gaze....”

Such individuals can have an impact on this world through their unarticulated intentions alone.

כי נפש רוח נשמה שלהם עצמן הן מ״ן, במסירות נפש על התורה

For their Nefesh, Ruach and Neshamah themselves constitute [the arousal initiated by the recipient which is known as] Ma’n, through their self-sacrificing devotion for the Torah,

ובנפילת אפים, כנודע

and during the Tachanun prayer, during which we say “To You, G‑d, I lift my soul,” as is known.

This ability, however, remains the province of a select few. The overwhelming majority of Jews accomplish this elevation through mitzvot of action involving an actual deed or speech. And in this manner they are able to bring about a union “face to face” between Za and Malchut — the sublime union of Kudsha Brich Hu and His Shechinah, which draws Divinity down into this world.

FOOTNOTES

1.Za (as the benefactor) is termed “male”, and Malchut (as the recipient) is termed “female”. Their union — (The Rebbe here refers the reader to Tanya, ch. 41) — is called the union of Kudsha Brich Hu (“the Holy One, Blessed be He”) and His Shechinah (“the Divine Presence”), for Za (as implied by the term kadosh) is separate from the world, while Malchut is called Shechinah (from the root meaning “to dwell”) because it descends within the world. This union results in the revelation of Divinity within the world.

2.The abbreviations מ״ן and מ״ד are the initials (respectively) of two Kabbalistic metaphors in Aramaic: mayin nukvin (lit., “feminine waters”) and mayin d’churin (or: mayin duchrin; lit., “masculine waters”).

3.Sanhedrin 65a.

4.As explained at length in the Kabbalah and in the literature of Chassidut, all things that are to be found in the kelipot “fell” there from the “seven kings” of the World of Tohu. The “kings” that “fell” into kelipat nogah are refined and elevated through man’s spiritual service.

5.Bereishit 5:2.

~~~~~~~

Rambam ~ Daily Mitzvah

N253 & N253

Negative Commandment 253 (Digest)
Cheating a Convert

"Do not distress him"—Exodus 22:20.

It is forbidden cheat a convert in the course of commerce [by deceptively overcharging or underpaying for merchandise]. Though it is forbidden to cheat anyone, one who cheats a convert transgresses this additional prohibition, too.

The 253rd prohibition is that we are forbidden from causing financial damage to a convert.

The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement,1 "Do not oppress him."

In the words of the Mechilta: "The verse 'Do not oppress him' means to do so financially."

It has already been explained in tractate Bava Metzia2 that one who [verbally] causes distress to a convert transgresses the prohibitions "V'lo sonu one another"3 and "Do not wrong a convert."4 One who oppresses him [financially] transgresses the prohibition, "Do not oppress him," in addition to the general prohibition that includes all Jews, ona'as mamon.5

Rabbi Berel Bell is a well-known educator, author and lecturer. He and his family reside in Montreal, Canada.

From "Sefer Hamitzvot in English," published by Sichos in English.

FOOTNOTES

1.Ex. 22:20.

2.59b.

3.N251.

4.N252.

5.N250.

Important Message Regarding This Lesson

The Daily Mitzvah schedule runs parallel to the daily study of 3 chapters of Maimonides' 14-volume code. There are instances when the Mitzvah is repeated a few days consecutively while the exploration of the same Mitzvah continues in the in-depth track.

Negative Commandment 253 (Digest)
Cheating a Convert

"Do not distress him"—Exodus 22:20.

It is forbidden cheat a convert in the course of commerce [by deceptively overcharging or underpaying for merchandise]. Though it is forbidden to cheat anyone, one who cheats a convert transgresses this additional prohibition, too.

The 253rd prohibition is that we are forbidden from causing financial damage to a convert.

The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement,1 "Do not oppress him."

In the words of the Mechilta: "The verse 'Do not oppress him' means to do so financially."

It has already been explained in tractate Bava Metzia2 that one who [verbally] causes distress to a convert transgresses the prohibitions "V'lo sonu one another"3 and "Do not wrong a convert."4 One who oppresses him [financially] transgresses the prohibition, "Do not oppress him," in addition to the general prohibition that includes all Jews, ona'as mamon.5

FOOTNOTES

1.Ex. 22:20.

2.59b.

3.N251.

4.N252.

5.N250.

~~~~~~~

• Rambam ~ 1 Chapter a day: Parah Adummah Chapter 3 & Parah Adummah Chapter 4

Chapter 3

Halacha 1

The red heifer should be burnt only outside the Temple Mount, as Numbers 19:3 states: "And you shall take it outside the camp." They would burn it on the Mount of Olives. A ramp was built from the Temple Mount to the Mount of Olives. Below it were arches upon arches, i.e., an arch on two arches, so that there would be empty space under it, lest there be a grave in the depths of the earth. Similarly, the place where the heifer was burnt and the place of immersion on the Mount of Olives had the space under them hollowed, lest there be a grave in the depths of the earth.

The red heifer, the one who would burn it, and all those who assist in its burning go from the Temple Mount to the Mount of Olives on this ramp.

Halacha 2

How was the red heifer burnt? The elders of Israel would walk to the Mount of Olives first. There was a mikveh there. The priest, those assisting in burning it, and the heifer would go out on the ramp and come to the Mount of Olives.

There they would make the priest impure. The elders would rest their hands on the priest and tell him: "Immerse yourself." If he was a High Priest, they would tell him: "My sir, the High Priest, immerse yourself." He would descend, immerse himself, ascend, and dry himself.

There was wood arranged there: cedar wood, oak wood, pine wood, and smooth fig wood. An arrangement like a tower was made and windows were made in the midst of it, so that the fire would flame in them. The front of the arrangement was in the west.

The heifer would be tied with a rope of love grass and it would be brought onto the arrangement with its head to the south and its face to the west. The priest would stand to the east with his head facing west. He would slaughter the heifer with his right hand and receive its blood in his left hand. With his right finger, he would sprinkle from the blood in his left palm seven times toward the Holy of Holies. He would dip his finger in the blood for every sprinkling. The remainder of the blood on his finger was disqualified for sprinkling, Therefore, after every sprinkling, he would clean his finger on the body of the heifer.

When he completed sprinkling, he would clean his hands on the body of the heifer and descend from the arrangement. He would light the fire with small kindling twigs and place them below the wood of the arrangement. The fire would begin to catch in it. The priest would stand at a distance and watch it until the fire catches in its larger portion and its belly becomes ripped open.

Afterwards, he takes a branch of a cedar tree and hyssop that is at least a handbreadth long, and wool dyed crimson weighing five selaim. He asks the people standing there: "Is this a piece of cedar?" "Is this a piece of cedar?" "Is this a piece of cedar?" "Is this hyssop?" "Is this hyssop?" "Is this hyssop?" "Is this a crimson thread?" "Is this a crimson thread?" "Is this a crimson thread?", asking each question three times. They answer: "Yes!" "Yes!" "Yes!", three times for each set of questions.

Why is all this necessary? Because there are seven species of cedar, four species of hyssop, and several options to produce red dye. Some dye with madder and some dye with lacca sap, and some dye with tola'at? Tola'at refers to very red berries that resemble carob seeds. They are like sumach berries. There is a bug, like a gnat, in every berry. Since there are different types of species for each of the entities involved, the priest notifies everyone and informs them that these are the species mentioned in the Torah.

The hyssop mentioned in the Torah is the type of hyssop eaten by home-owners and used as a condiment in certain dishes. The hyssop, cedar, and wool dyed crimson are all absolute requirements, without one of which, the others are not acceptable. The priest should bind the hyssop together with the cedar branch with the crimson thread and then throw them into the belly of the heifer, as Numbers 19:6 states: "He shall cast them into the midst of the conflagration of the heifer."

He should not cast them into the heifer until the fire has caught hold of the larger portion of it and not after it has been reduced to ashes. If he casts them at those times, it is unacceptable, as indicated by the phrase: "into the midst of the conflagration," i.e., not before the fire has caught onto its larger portion and not after it was reduced to ashes. Whether one cast all three of them together or one after the other, whether one cast them into the heifer's body or into the fire, whether its belly burst open on its own accord or the priest ripped it open by hand or with a utensil, it is acceptable.

Halacha 3

When the process of burning it has been completed, its remnants and all of the pieces of wood in its arrangement that were burnt with it are beaten with clubs and everything is raked out with rakes. Anything - whether from its flesh or from the wood - that has been blackened and is possible to be crushed and reduced to ashes, should be crushed and reduced to ashes. If something has no trace of ash on it, it is left. Any piece of bone that remains from the heifer's bones that was not burnt should be crushed regardless.

Halacha 4

None of its ashes are brought into the Temple Courtyard for storage, as ibid.:9 states: "And he shall place it outside the camp." The ashes were divided into three portions: one was placed in the chayl one, on the Mount of Olives, and one, was divided among all the priestly guardposts.

The one that was divided among all the priestly watches was used by the priests to sanctify themselves. The one that was placed on the Mount of Olives was used by the entire Jewish people for sprinkling. And the one that was placed in the chayl was prepared and hidden away, as implied by ibid. which states: "It will be a security for the congregation of Israel." This teaches that it was put away for safekeeping.

Indeed, in the chayl, they would put away for safekeeping a portion of the ashes from every red heifer that was burnt. Nine red heifers were offered from the time that they were commanded to fulfill this mitzvah until the time when the Temple was destroyed a second time. The first was brought by Moses our teacher. The second was brought by Ezra. Seven others were offered until the destruction of the Second Temple. And the tenth will be brought by the king Mashiach; may he speedily be revealed. Amen, so may it be G-d's will.

Chapter 4

Halacha 1

Two red heifers should not be slaughtered at the same time, as Numbers 19:3 states: "And you shall slaughter it."

Halacha 2

If the red heifer did not desire to go out, a black one should not be taken out with it, so that it would not be said: "They slaughtered a black one." Nor is another red one taken out, so that it would not be said: "They slaughtered two at once."

Halacha 3

When a red heifer was slaughtered with another intent in mind or its blood was received or sprinkled with another intent in mind, with the proper intent and another intent in mind, or with another intent and the proper intent in mind, it was offered by someone other than a priest, or it was offered by a priest lacking one or more of the priestly garments, while wearing the golden garments, or while wearing ordinary garments, it is unacceptable.

If it was slaughtered with the intent of partaking of its flesh or drinking its blood, it is acceptable. The rationale is that the expression "a pleasant fragrance" was not stated with regard to it.

Halacha 4

If its blood was received in a container, it is unacceptable, as Numbers 19:4 states: "And Elazar the priest will take the blood with his finger." The mitzvah is performed with the finger and not with a utensil.

Halacha 5

If he sprinkled the blood, even one sprinkling with a utensil, the sprinkling is unacceptable. If he performed one sprinkling with his left hand, it is unacceptable. If seven priests sprinkled the blood at the same time, their sprinkling is unacceptable. If they did so one after the other, it is acceptable.

If he sprinkled the blood, but did not direct it to the Sanctuary, it is unacceptable, as ibid. states: "opposite the front of the Tent of Meeting." Implied is that he should direct it toward the Sanctuary and see the Sanctuary. Similarly, if he slaughtered it or burnt it not opposite the Sanctuary, it is unacceptable, as implied by Numbers 19:3: "He shall slaughter it before him."

Halacha 6

When does the above apply? When he sprinkled the blood or burnt or slaughtered the heifer southward or northward, or with his back to the Sanctuary. If, however, he stood between the east and the west and faced the Sanctuary, even if he did not direct himself toward the Sanctuary exactly, it is acceptable.

Halacha 7

If one of the sprinklings is lacking, it is unacceptable. If one dipped his finger in the blood twice and sprinkled once, the sprinkling is unacceptable. If he dipped his finger once and sprinkled twice, even if he did not count the second sprinkling and instead, dipped his finger and sprinkled a second time, it is unacceptable.

What is implied? He dipped his finger in the blood for the sixth time and performed the sixth and seventh sprinklings, it is unacceptable, even if he dipped his finger in the blood again and sprinkled it a seventh time. If, after dipping his finger into the blood for the seventh time, he performed a seventh and eighth sprinkling - even if he dipped his finger into the blood an eighth time and then sprinkled it an eighth time, it is acceptable, for any addition over the seven is of no consequence, provided it is another priest making the addition. If, however, the priest burning it made the additional sprinkling, it is unacceptable, because he involved himself in an unnecessary activity while burning it.

Halacha 8

If one removed the blood from its arrangement and then sprinkled it, it is invalid.

Halacha 9

If one sprinkled its blood at night - even if one performed seven sprinklings during the day and one at night - it is unacceptable.

Halacha 10

If one slaughtered it outside the place where it is burnt, even if one slaughtered it within the walls of Jerusalem, it is unacceptable.

Halacha 11

If one burnt it outside the arrangement on which it was slaughtered, it was divided in two and burnt in two arrangements, or two heifers were burned on one arrangement, it is disqualified. If it was already reduced to ashes, one may bring another one and slaughter it over the ashes of the first without any qualms.

Halacha 12

If one skinned it and cut it into pieces and then burnt it in its entirety, it is acceptable. If any slight part of its substance, even its dung, is lacking, it is unacceptable. If an olive-sized portion of its skin, meat, or even its hair flew off its pyre, it should be returned. If he did not return it, it is unacceptable.

If it flew outside its arrangement, one should place much wood over it and burn it in its place. If its horns, its hooves, or its dung flew off, they need not be returned to the pyre.

Halacha 13

The red heifer is not disqualified if it is left overnight without being burnt. Therefore if it was slaughtered on one day and its blood sprinkled as required and then it was burned on the following day, it is acceptable.

Halacha 14

If the priest who burns it is in the acute state of onein mourning or is lacking atonement, it is acceptable.

Halacha 15

If one burnt it without sanctifying his hands and feet, it is invalid, because the process of offering the red heifer is comparable to sacrificial worship.

Where does he sanctify his hands and feet? From a consecrated vessel in the Temple Courtyard. If one consecrated them outside the Temple Courtyard with an ordinary vessel, even with a tiny earthenware cup, it is acceptable, because the entire process of offering the heifer is performed outside.

When the priest who burns the red heifer immerses himself after he is made impure, as we explained, he need not sanctify his hands and feet again, since the entire process of offering it is performed by those who immersed that day.

Halacha 16

If one burnt it without wood or with all types of wood, even with straw and stubble, it is acceptable, The optimum way of performing the mitzvah is not to reduce the wood less than is appropriate. On the contrary, one should add to it bundles of hyssop and Greek hyssop while it is burning to increase the amount of ashes. One may add to its conflagration until the heifer itself is reduced to ashes. Once it is reduced to ashes, if one added even one piece of wood to it, it is like one who mixed ashes from a range with the ashes of the red heifer.

Halacha 17

All of the activities performed with the red heifer from the beginning to the end must be performed only during the day and by male priests and the performance of work disqualifies it until it is reduced to ashes. Once it is reduced to ashes, it is acceptable even if its ashes were collected at night, by a woman, or one performed another task while collecting them.

What is the source that teaches that the collection of the ashes is acceptable if performed by any person with the exception of a deafmute, an intellectually or emotionally incapable person, or a minor? It is written Numbers 19:9: "And a pure man shall gather the ashes of the heifer." It can be derived that a priest is not required. Moreover, it is as if it said "a pure person," i.e., either a man or a woman.

What source teaches that the performance of work disqualifies it? Ibid.:3 states: "And he shall slaughter it." According to the Oral Tradition, we learned that this phrase comes solely to teach that if the priest becomes involved in another task at the time of slaughter, it is unacceptable. And ibid.:5 states: "And the heifer shall be burnt before his eyes," i.e., his eyes should be concentrated on it. This teaches that the performance of work causes it to be disqualified from the time of its slaughter until it is reduced to ashes. Anyone involved in burning it who performs another task disqualifies it until it is reduced to ashes.

Halacha 18

If one slaughtered the heifer and another animal was slaughtered with it or a gourd was cut with it, it is acceptable because he did not intend to perform work. This applies even though the animal that was slaughtered with it is acceptable to be eaten, for the slaughter of ordinary animals does not require concentrated intent. If, however, one had the intent of cutting the gourd and it was cut while he was slaughtering the red heifer, the heifer is disqualified, because work was performed during its slaughter.

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• Rambam ~ 3 Chapters: Mechirah Chapter Nineteen, Mechirah Chapter Twenty, Mechirah Chapter Twenty One & Mechirah Chapter Twenty Two, Mechirah Chapter Twenty Three, Mechirah Chapter Twenty Four

Chapter Nineteen

Halacha 1

It is forbidden for a person to sell a colleague landed property or movable property concerning which there is a dispute or a judgment pending, until he notifies the purchaser. This law applies even if the seller is responsible for the property if it is expropriated from the purchaser. The rationale is that a person does not desire to pay money for an object and then be forced to enter into litigation concerning it, because he is being sued by others.

Halacha 2

When a person sells landed property to a colleague and claims of ownership are filed by others - after the purchaser acquires the property through one of the established modes of acquisition, but before he makes use of it - the purchaser may retract; there is no blemish greater than this. Before he has even made use of his purchase, claimants come and demand it.

Therefore, the transaction should be nullified and the seller should return the money and enter into litigation with the claimants. If the purchaser made any use of it whatsoever, even if he merely threw down its property marker and joined it to his own adjacent property, he may not retract. Instead, he must enter into litigation with the claimants. If they are successful in expropriating it from him in court, he may seek settlement from the seller, as is the law with regard to all from whom property is expropriated.

Halacha 3

Whenever a person sells landed property, a servant or other movable property, he is responsible for them. What is implied? If a litigant expropriates the purchased article from the purchaser because of the seller,? the purchaser may collect all the money he paid from the seller, because the article was taken because of him.

This law applies with regard to all sales, even if the purchaser does not explicitly make this stipulation, but purchases the article without any qualification. Even if he purchases landed property by virtue of the transfer of a legal document, and the seller's responsibility is not mentioned in the document, the seller is responsible for the property. The fact that his responsibility is not mentioned is considered to be a scribal error.

Halacha 4

When does the above apply? When the purchased article was expropriated from the purchaser in a Jewish court. For example, the purchased article was movable property and it was proven that it was obtained by theft or robbery, or landed property was taken by robbery, or a creditor of the seller came and expropriated it from the purchaser.

All the above applies if the expropriation was dictated by a Jewish court. If, however, a gentile expropriates the purchased article from the purchaser, whether through an edict of the king or through a secular court, the seller is not responsible for the article. Although the gentile claims that the seller stole this article or robbed him of it and brought witnesses to that effect, the seller is not liable at all. For the expropriation of the article by gentiles is considered to be beyond the seller's control, and a seller is not liable for losses that are beyond his control.

Halacha 5

When a person sells landed property to a colleague and the seller makes a stipulation that he will reimburse the purchaser for any loss of this property due to factors beyond his control, he is liable to pay even if a gentile comes and seizes by force the property due to the seller.

If, however, a stream that was watering the field dries up, the flow of a stream deviates and makes a portion of land into a pool, or an earthquake comes and destroys it, the seller is not liable. For matters of this nature are both beyond one's control and infrequent. It would not have occurred to a seller to think about such an abnormal matter at the time he made this stipulation. Similarly, any other factor beyond one's control that is abnormal is not included in this stipulation.

Halacha 6

This same principle applies with regard to any condition that is made with regard to monetary matters. We analyze the intent of the person making the stipulation. We include within its scope only matters that are well-known that we would assume to have been taken in within the stipulation, because they would have been in the mind of the person making the stipulation at that time.

Halacha 7

An incident occurred concerning a person who hired sailors to transport sesame seeds to a certain place. He made a stipulation with them that they are responsible for any loss that occurs because of factors beyond their control until the sesame seeds reach their destination. And then, the river on which they expected to transport the cargo ceased flowing.

Our Sages said: This is an abnormal factor beyond their control. They are not likely to transport these sesame seeds on an animal to that place. Similar principles apply in all analogous situations.

Halacha 8

When a person sells landed property to a colleague and the seller explicitly stipulates that he is not responsible, the seller is not held responsible. This applies even if it becomes known with certainty that the property was stolen, and it is expropriated from the purchaser.

Needless to say, should a creditor of the seller come and expropriate it from the purchaser, the seller is not liable to reimburse him. For any stipulation that is made with regard to financial matters is binding.

Halacha 9

The following rule applies when Reuven sold a field to Shimon without taking responsibility for it, and Levi comes and expropriates it from Shimon based on a claim against Reuven. If he desires, Reuven can enter into litigation with Levi. Levi cannot protest: "What business do you and I have together? You have no responsibility for the property." For Reuven will tell him: "I do not want Shimon to have any claims against me, for he has lost money on my account."

Halacha 10

The following rule applies when Reuven sold a field to Shimon without taking responsibility and then repurchased it from him requiring Shimon to take responsibility. If a creditor of Reuven comes to expropriate the field from him, he may not require Shimon to pay for it. Although he did not accept responsibility when he sold it to Shimon, he took responsibility with regard to himself, that he should not be the seller and then expropriate the property himself.

If, however, a creditor of Jacob, their father, comes and expropriates the property from Reuven, Reuven may demand payment of the entire worth of the field from Shimon. For Shimon accepted responsibility for the field when he sold it back to Reuven, while Reuven did not accept any responsibility for others when he sold it to Shimon.

Chapter Twenty

Halacha 1

The following rules apply in the situation to be described. A person wanted to purchase an article from a colleague. The seller said: "I will sell it to you for 200 zuz,"but the purchaser said: "I will not purchaseitfor more than amaneh." They each returned home. Afterwards, they came together again and the purchaser took possession of the article by meshichah without making any further statements. If it was the seller who made the proposition to the purchaser and gave him the article, he is required to give him only a maneh. If, however, it was the purchaser who performed meshichah without making any further offers, he is required to pay 200 zuz.

Halacha 2

The following rule applies when a person purchases an article from one of five people, but is unsure of the identity of the seller, and each of the five claims that he was the seller. The purchaser should place the money for the item among them and depart. The money should remain in custody until the false claimants admit that it is not theirs or Elijah comes. If the purchaser is pious, he should pay each one of the claimants to fulfill a moral and spiritual obligation.

Halacha 3

Different rules apply when a person purchased an article from one of five people, did not pay at the time, denied taking the article by making a false oath and then repented and wanted to make restitution. If all five demanded payment from him, saying, "I am the one from whom you denied taking the article, and to whom you made a false oath," and he says, "I do not know," he is obligated to pay each of them, because he committed a transgression.

Halacha 4

The seller's word is accepted when he says: "I sold the article to this one, and I did not sell the article to this one."When does this apply? When the article that he is selling is in his possession. If, however, the article is no longer in his possession, his statements are given no more credence than those of one witness, and the laws applying to him with regard to this testimony are no different from those applying to other people, for he is no longer involved in the matter concerning which he testified.

Therefore, if a seller took money from two people, one intentionally and one gave him money against the seller's will, and the seller does not know the identity of the person from whom he took money intentionally and that of the person who gave him money against his will, there is no testimony at all. Each of the persons must take an oath holding a sacred article, as dictated by our Sages. Each then receives half of the purchased article and half the money.

This applies whether the article is in the hands of the seller or both of the claimants are holding it.

Halacha 5

The principle, "When a person desires to expropriate property from a colleague, the burden of proof is upon him," is applied in all the following situations and in other similar ones:

The purchaser claims: "You sold the article to me," and the seller claims

that he did not;

The seller claims that he sold the article to the purchaser, and the

purchaser did not pay for it;

The purchaser claims that he paid the money, but did not perform

meshichah;

The purchaser claims that he performed meshichah without seeing a particular blemish, and the seller claimed to have appraised him of it

beforehand; or One of them claimed that the transaction had been made conditional on a stipulation, and the other denied that.

Halacha 6

In the above instances, if the plaintiff does not prove his claim, the defendant who denies the claim must support his own claim with a sh'vuat hesset. If he admits a portion of the plaintiff's claim, or the plaintiffs claim is supported by one witness, the defendant must take an oath, as mandated by Scriptural Law, as applies with regard to all other claims.

Halacha 7

The following rules apply when a person tells a storekeeper: "Give me a dinar's worth of produce," and the storekeeper gives it to him, and the produce is placed in the public domain. If the storekeeper demands payment of the dinar and the purchaser replies "I paid you the money, and you put it into your pocket," the purchaser is required to take an oath as ordained by our Sages, holding a sacred object. Afterwards, he may take the produce. The rationale is that the produce has already left the domain of the seller and was placed in the public domain.

If the produce was in the domain of the purchaser, he would be required to take only a sh'vuat hesset, and then he would be freed of responsibility. If the produce was in the domain of the storekeeper, the storekeeper would be required to take a sh'vuat hesset, and the produce would remain his.

Halacha 8

Different rules apply if a purchaser gives a dinar to a storekeeper to take produce that has been placed down in the public domain. If the storekeeper says: "The dinar that you just gave me is payment for produce that I previously gave you and that you took to your home. I never sold you this produce that is now placed in the public domain," the storekeeper must take an oath to support his claim while holding a sacred object. The produce is then returned to the storekeeper, for he never admitted selling it to the purchaser. And if the produce was located in his store, all that would be required of him would be a sh'vuat hesset, as explained in the previous halachah.

Halacha 9

Similar rules apply when a person gives a dinar to a money-changer to take coins when the coins are piled in the public domain. If the money-changer admits to having sold the coins and he has not taken the dinar, the purchaser must support his claim by taking an oath while holding a sacred object and may then take the coins. If, however, the money-changer does not admit to having sold the coins to the purchaser, even though he admits taking a dinar from the purchaser at this time, for he claims that the dinar is payment for coins that the purchaser already took home, the money-changer must support his claim by taking an oath while holding a sacred object. The coins are then returned to his store.

Halacha 10

The following laws apply when a person exchanges a cow and a donkey, and the cow bears a calf, or one sells a maidservant and she gives birth. The seller claims: "She gave birth before I sold her." The purchaser claims: "She gave birth after I purchased her." The purchaser must bring proof of his claim to be granted possession.

This ruling applies even if the seller says: "I do not know when she gave birth." Indeed, even if the cow is located in a swamp or the maidservant in a corner of the public domain, they are considered to be in the possession of the seller until the purchaser brings proof of his claim.If the purchaser does not bring proof of his claim, the seller must take an oath while holding a sacred object to support his claim. This applies with regard to the offspring of a cow. With regard to the offspring of a maidservant, by contrast, he is required only to take a sh'vuat hesset. For an oath associated with a sacred object is never taken with regard to servants or landed property, as explained in Hilchot To'en V'Nit'an.

Halacha 11

If one says: "I do not know when the offspring was born," and the other also does not know, and the offspring is located in a domain that does not belong to either of them, it should be divided.

If one says: "The offspring was born in my domain," and the other remains silent, the one who makes the claim is awarded the offspring.

Halacha 12

The following rules apply when a dispute arises concerning a seller who owns two servants, one an adult and one a minor, or two fields, one large and one small. The purchaser claims: "I purchased the greater one," while the seller claims: "You purchased the smaller one." The burden of proof lies with the purchaser. If he does not substantiate his claim, the seller should take a sh'vuat hesset that it was the smaller one that he sold and he is allowed to keep the larger one.

Halacha 13

If the purchaser says: "I purchased the greater one," and the seller remains silent, the purchaser is awarded the greater one.

If the seller says: "I do not know," the burden of proof lies on the purchaser. If he does not substantiate his claim, the seller should take a sh'vuat hesset that he does not know which article was purchased,and the purchaser is awarded only the smaller one.

Halacha 14

Whenever a doubt over responsibility for an article arises the burden of proof lies on the person in whose domain the doubt arises.

What is implied? A person exchanges a cow for a donkey, and the owner of the donkey performs meshichah on the cow, but before the owner of the cow can perform meshichah on the donkey, the donkey dies. The burden of proof is on the owner of the donkey to verify that the donkey was alive at the time meshichah was performed on the cow. The same principle applies in all analogous situations.

Halacha 15

The following laws apply when a butcher sold an animal to a purchaser before its slaughter, it was slaughtered, and afterwards, a needle was discovered in the animal's second stomach that had pierced it from side to side.'

If a drop of blood is found upon it, it is clear that it became trefah before its slaughter. If a scab had formed over the wound, it is clear that it became trefah three days before its slaughter. If a scab had not formed over the wound, there is a lack of clarity concerning the matter, and the butcher must bring proof that the disqualifying factor arose before the purchase. This decision is rendered because the cow was in his possession when the doubt arose. If he cannot bring proof to this effect, he must pay the money due to the seller, as explained above.

Chapter Twenty One

Halacha 1

The following rules apply when a person transfers a non-specific entity to a colleague. If the species being sold is known, even though its measure, its weight and its number are not known, the transaction is binding. If the species is not known, the transaction is not binding.

Halacha 2

What is implied? If a person tells a colleague: "I am selling you this heap of wheat for this and this amount," "I am selling you this cellar of wine for this and this amount," or "I am selling you this bag of figs for this and this amount," the sale is binding, even though the measure of the grain heap, the weight of the figs and the number of containers of wine is unknown.

These principles apply even if the quantity is greater or less than the estimation of the seller or the purchaser. The laws of ona'ah apply, and the purchase price is compared to the market price, as explained.

Halacha 3

If, however, a person tells a colleague: "I will sell you whatever this house contains for this and this amount," "...whatever this chest contains,..." or "whatever this sack contains for this and this amount," the purchaser agrees and performs meshichah, the transaction is not binding. For the purchaser did not make a binding commitment, since he does not know what the receptacle contains, whether straw or gold. This is no more than gambling. The same applies in all analogous situations.

Halacha 4

Similarly, if a person tells a colleague that he is selling him wheat for ten dinarim, but does not stipulate how many se'ah he is selling him, he must give him an amount of wheat equivalent to the market price at the time of the sale. Should either of the parties retract after the money has been paid, because they do not agree to the market price at the time of the sale, that party must receive the adjuration mi shepara, as explained.

Halacha 5

When a person sells property to a colleague to build a house or a barn for cattle, he should give him a place four cubits by six cubits. Similarly, when a person agrees to build a wedding home for a colleague's son or a home for a widowed daughter he should build a home of this size.

If he sells him property to build a large house, he should give him a space eight cubits by ten cubits. If he sells him a place for a reception hall, he should give him a space ten cubits by ten cubits. A place for a garden of a courtyard is twelve cubits by twelve cubits.

The height of a structure is half of its combined length and width.

Halacha 6

Similarly, when a person sells a property to a colleague for a family burial plot or if a person agrees to prepare a burial plot for a person, he should build a crypt beneath the earth and prepare for eight graves, three on one side, three on the other side and two opposite the entrance to the crypt.

The measure of the crypt should be four cubits by six cubits, and each grave should be four cubits long, six handbreadths wide and seven handbreadths deep. Thus, there should be a cubit and a half between each of the graves on the sides and two cubits between the graves opposite the entrance.

Halacha 7

When a person sells a colleague a place in his own field to make an irrigation ditch to water a parched field, he must give him a ditch two cubits wide, with a cubit on each side for its banks.

If he sells him a place for an irrigation ditch that uses a pipe, he must give him a ditch that is a cubit wide, with half a cubit on each side for its banks.

Halacha 8

The seller may plant trees on this land at the banks of the ditch, but he may not sow grain there, for grain weakens the land and damages the irrigation ditch. Should this land at the banks of the ditch become washed away, the purchaser may replace it by taking from the earth in that field. For the seller's acceptance of the fact that an irrigation ditch will pass through his field is conditional to this stipulation.

Halacha 9

The following rules apply when a person sells a colleague a path in his field. If he sells him a path for one person, is he must give him a path two and a half cubits wide, so that a donkey and its burden can pass on the path.'

If he sells him a path that leads from one city to another, he must give him a path that is eight cubits wide. If he sells him a path for use as a public thoroughfare, he should give him a path that is sixteen cubits wide.

Halacha 10

A path for a king and a path to a grave have no limits. It appears to me that this is considered as if one sells an object whose species is not identified, in which instance the transaction is not binding.

Halacha 11

If a person sells a colleague a place for relatives to stand and eulogize a person who has passed away,he must give him a place large enough to sow four kabbim of grain.

Halacha 12

When a person tells a colleague: "I am selling you a cistern and its walls," he must give him a wall three handbreadths wide.

Halacha 13

The following rules apply when a person sells a field to a colleague and while defining the boundaries of the field draws one boundary line long and another short. If the field on the boundary line that he drew longer belongs to only one person, the purchaser does not acquire any more land on that side of the field than on the side that he drew short. If the fields on that side belong to two individuals, the purchaser acquires the land as separated by a diagonal.

Halacha 14

If the fields on the east and the west belong to Reuven, and those on the north and the south belong to Shimon, when drawing the map, the seller must write "the boundary of Reuven" on two sides and "the boundary of Shimon" on two sides.

Halacha 15

If the seller drew three boundary lines, but did not draw the fourth, the purchaser acquires the entire field. With regard to the fourth boundary, however, he does not acquire it.

If the fourth boundary is included within the other boundaries, and it is not designated by a row of palm trees, and it is not large enough for nine kabbim of grain to be sown within, the purchaser also acquires the fourth boundary.

If it is not included within the other boundaries, and it is designated by a row of palm trees, or it is large enough for nine kabbim of grain to be sown within, the purchaser does not acquire the fourth boundary.If it is included within the other boundaries, but it is designated by a row of palm trees, or it is large enough for nine kabbim of grain to be sown within, or it is not included within the other boundaries, but it is not designated by a row of palm trees, nor is it large enough for nine kabbim of grain to be sown within, the matter is entrusted to the court, and they divide it in the manner in which they see fit.

Halacha 16

If the seller designates only the corners of the property, without designating the entire boundary line in each direction, or he designates two corners in an L-shape, or he designates certain portions in each direction,the purchaser does not acquire the entire property. Instead, he acquires only the portion the seller transfers to him and the portion granted to him by the judges.

Halacha 17

If a person sells a colleague a bayit in a larger building, although he drew for the purchaser the external boundaries of the entire building, and there are some who would call the entire building a bayit, the purchaser acquires only the apartment; he merely made the boundaries appear larger.

Had he sold him the entire building, he would have written in the deed of sale: "I did not retain ownership of anything in this sale."

Similarly, when a person sells a field in a large valley, although he drew him the boundaries of the entire valley, he merely made the boundaries appear larger.

Halacha 18

When a person tells a colleague: "I am selling you fields," we interpret his intent to be the very minimum that would justify the use of the plural term: two.

If he tells him: "...all my fields...," then all his fields, even three or four are acquired by the purchaser, with the exception of gardens and orchards. If he tells him: "...my property...," even his gardens and orchards are sold. If he tells him: "...all my property...," everything he owns, even his servants, his buildings, all the movable property that he is known to own, including even the tefillin he wears on his head, are encompassed in the sale.

Halacha 19

When a person tells a colleague: "I am selling you one of my homes," or "...one of my oxen," he is required only to give him the smallest one. If one of the oxen dies or one of the homes collapses, the seller may show the purchaser the one that died or collapsed and tell him that it is his, for the claim of the person possessing the deed of sale is considered at a disadvantage. 20. When a person tells a colleague: "I am selling you a field from the house of Chiyya," and he possesses two fields that are described in this manner, the purchaser acquires only the lesser one. Similar principles apply in all analogous situations.

Halacha 21

The purchaser's claim is favored in the following situation: A person tells a colleague: "I am selling you Reuven's field." When the purchaser comes to make use of the field that is popularly known by that name, the seller tells him: "This is not the field that was owned by Reuven. It is only called that by people, but it never belonged to him. This is the field that belonged to Reuven" he says, pointing to another field. "I purchased it from him, and this is the field that I sold to you."

The seller must prove his claim. If he does not prove it, the purchaser acquires the field that is popularly known as belonging to Reuven. Similar principles apply in all analogous situations. We follow the name that is accepted universally.

Halacha 22

When a person tells a colleague: "I am selling you half a field," we should evaluate the worth of the entire field, and the seller should give the purchaser a portion worth half the value of the entire field, from its lesser portion.

Similarly, when a person tells a colleague: "I am selling you the southern half of a field," we should evaluate the worth of the entire field, and the seller should give the purchaser a portion worth half the value of the entire field from its southern half.

Implicit in such an agreement is a commitment by the purchaser to make a place for a fence in his portion, including a small trench three handbreadths wide behind the fence, but close to it - and a larger trench, six handbreadths wide, outside the fence - and to leave the width of a handbreadth between the two trenches. All this is necessary to prevent a marten or the like from jumping from one field to the other.

Halacha 23

The following rules apply when a person owns half of a field: If he tells a colleague: "I am selling you the half of the field that I own," the purchaser acquires the entire half. If he tells him: "I am selling you half the field that I own," the purchaser acquires only one fourth.

The following rules apply when a seller tells a purchaser: "These are the boundaries of the field from which a portion is divided...," "...is separated...," or"...is apportioned for you."If he tells him: "And these are its boundaries,"the purchaser acquires half. If he does not specify its boundaries, the purchaser acquires merely a portion on which he could sow nine kabbim.

Chapter Twenty Two

Halacha 1

A person cannot transfer ownership over an article that has not yet come into existence. This applies with regard to a sale, with regard to a present or with regard to the disposition of an oral will.

What is implied? If a person states: "What my field will produce is sold to you," "What this tree will grow is given to you," "Give so and so the offspring that this animal bears," the recipient does not acquire anything. Similar principles apply in all analogous situations.

Halacha 2

When a person sells the fruit of a date palm to a colleague, he may retract even after the fruits of the date palm have already come into existence. If the purchaser harvests the fruits, they are not expropriated from him. If either of them retracts, he is not required to receive the adjuration mi shepara.

Halacha 3

When, however, a person sells produce at the market price, although the seller was not in possession of the type of produce, the seller is obligated to purchase the amount of produce he pledged, and give it to the purchaser. If he retracts, he must receive the adjuration mi shepara.

Halacha 4

The following rules apply when a person sells produce at the market price, promising to give four se'ah for a sela. Even if the grain was in stalks, the transaction is completed, and if he retracts, the seller is liable to receive the adjuration mi shepara, provided either of the following stipulations is met:"

a) the seller shows the purchaser that he possesses grain in his storehouse, or

b) the purchaser tells the seller in the market place: "I am relying on you." If the purchaser did not tell the seller: "I am relying on you," the seller does

not consider this to be a firm agreement, and he is not required to receive the adjuration mi shepara if he retracts. For he says to himself: "Perhaps the purchaser also made such an agreement with another individual and he does not actually require this wheat."

Halacha 5

An entity that is not in the possession of the seller cannot be acquired; it is like an entity that has not come into existence.

What is implied? When a seller says: "What I will inherit from my father is sold to you," "What my net will bring up from the sea is sold to you," or "When I purchase this field, it is sold to you," the purchaser does not acquire anything. Similar principles apply in all analogous situations.

Halacha 6

When a person was on his deathbed and the heir desired to sell some of the dying person's property to spend the money for the sake of the burial, our Sages ordained that if the heir says: "What I will inherit from my father today is sold to you," the sale is binding. The rationale is that since the son is poor, if he is forced to wait until his father dies to sell the property, the corpse will remain unburied and be disgraced.

Similarly, provisions were made for a poor fisherman who has nothing to eat. If he says: "What my net brings in today from the sea is sold to you," the sale is binding. This was ordained to provide for his livelihood.

Halacha 7

If a son sold property belonging to his father during his father's lifetime, but the son died in his father's lifetime, the son's son may expropriate the property from the purchasers. The rationale is that his father sold something that had not entered his domain. Thus, the property remained in the domain of the grand father, and the grandson inherited the estate of his grandfather. Similar principles apply in all analogous situations.

Halacha 8

The following rules apply when a person gave a colleague landed property as a present, and together with it gave him 100 dinarim through a kinyan agav. If the dinarim existed in his domain at the time he gave the present, when the recipient acquired the field, he also acquired the dinarim. If. however, the giver does not have a dinar, we do not obligate the giver to give the recipient 100 dinarim until the recipient brings proof that the giver possessed dinarim at the time the recipient acquired the present.

The same principles apply to other movable property that a person desires to transfer together with landed property through a kinyan agav. If the movable property is not in the domain of the seller or the giver at the time the recipient acquires the present, he does not acquire it. For a person may not transfer ownership over an article that is not in his domain.

Halacha 9

When a person has entrusted an object to a colleague for safekeeping, he may transfer ownership over it, either through a sale or through a gift. The rationale is that an entrusted object is in the domain of its owner, and we operate under the presumption that the entrusted object continues to exists

If, however, the person to whom the article was entrusted denies receiving it, the owner may not transfer ownership of it. It is as if the article were lost; it is not in his domain.

Different rules apply with regard to a loan. Since a loan is given with the intent that it be spent, it cannot be transferred except through a ma'amad sh'loshtam, a convention that is not based on a motivating reason, as we have explained.

If the loan was supported by a promissory note, the creditor may transfer ownership of the promissory note with a written authorization and the transfer of the note, for there is an entity that can be transferred through which one can acquire the encumbrance it contains.

Halacha 10

Just as a person may not transfer ownership of an article that has not yet come into existence, so too, he may not transfer ownership of an article to someone who has not come into existence. Even a fetus is considered to be someone who has not come into existence, and thus, when a person wishes to endow a fetus with an article, the transaction is not binding.

If, however, the fetus is the person's son, the transaction is binding. The rationale is that a person feels great closeness to his son.

Halacha 11

When, however, a person tells his wife: "I will give my property to the children that you will bear," the children do not acquire anything. Since the woman was not pregnant at the time the present was given, the children had not yet reached a stage at which it could be said that a person feels great closeness for them.

Halacha 12

When a person desires to transfer ownership of property to an animal, the transfer is not effective at all. If a person attempted to transfer part of his property to an animal or to a person who did not exist, and afterwards told a colleague: "Acquire a share of my property as this animal does," or "... as this fetus does," [the colleague does not acquire anything.

If he tells him: "You and this animal shall acquire my property," or "You and this fetus ... ," the person acquires half of the property. 13. A person cannot transfer ownership - neither through a sale nor through a present - over an object unless it has substance. If it has no substance, ownership of it cannot be transferred.

Halacha 14

What is implied? A person cannot transfer ownership over the fragrance of an apple, the taste of honey, the color of crystal or the like. Therefore, when a person desires to transfer ownership of the right to partake of the fruits of this date palm or to dwell in this home, the recipient does not acquire anything. For the transaction to be effective, the owner must transfer the house itself for the sake of dwelling in it, or the tree itself for the purpose of eating its fruit, as will be explained.

Halacha 15

The laws applying to transactions involving property consecrated to the Temple, the poor, and vows are not the same as those involving ordinary people. If a person says: "All the offspring of my animal will be consecrated to the Temple treasury," "... will be forbidden to me," or "... will be given to charity," although the offspring does not become consecrated - because it does not yet exist - the person making the statement is obligated to keep his word,, as Numbers 30:3 states: "He must act according to the statements that he utters."

Halacha 16

Since this is so, if a person on his death bed says: "Whatever this tree produces should be given to the poor," or "The rent from this house should be given to the poor," the poor acquire these objects.

Halacha 17

There are Geonim who differ with this principle and hold that the poor acquire only in a similar matter to that of an ordinary person. Therefore, they do not acquire an entity that has not come into existence. I do not accept these principles. My rationale is that a person is not commanded to transfer ownership of property. He is, however, commanded to fulfill his pledges to charity or to consecrate property, as he is commanded to fulfill other vows, as we have explained in Hilchot Arachin.

Chapter Twenty Three

Halacha 1

A person can transfer ownership over a property itself with regard to the produce it yields. This applies with regard to a sale, with regard to a present or with regard to an oral will. This is not considered to be transferring ownership of an entity that has not come into existence. For the article itself exists, and the person is transferring ownership over its produce. To what can the matter be compared? To a person who rents a house or a field to a colleague, in which instance he did not transfer ownership over the property in its entirety, but rather merely the right to derive benefit from it.

Halacha 2

What is implied? A person sold or gave away a field with regard to its produce for a limited time, or for the entire lifetime of the seller or of the purchaser.

Similar rules apply to a person who sells or gives away a tree for its fruit, a sheep for its shearings, an animal or a maid-servant for her offspring or a servant for his work. In all such instances, the sale or the present is binding.

Halacha 3

There is an unresolved question if a sale is binding when a person sells his servant with regard to his fine - i.e., whether the fine which is imposed if the servant is gored by an ox and killed should be given to the purchaser or not. Therefore, the purchaser does not acquire the money; if he seizes it from the servant's owner, it is not expropriated from him.

Halacha 4

When a person sells a tree to one person and its fruit to another, when making the first sale he did not leave over the rights to the fruit. Therefore the second purchaser does not acquire anything.

If, however, a person sells a tree and leaves its fruit to himself, it is considered as if he retained the branches, the place where fruit grows, even if he did not explicitly say so. The rationale is that when a person retains property for himself, he acts generously.

Halacha 5

When a person sells landed property for a specific time, the sale is binding. The purchaser may use the body of the land as he desires and derive benefit from it throughout the duration of the sale. At the end of the specified time period, the property returns to its original owner.

Halacha 6

What is the difference between a person who sells landed property for a specific time and one who transfers ownership of it with regard to its produce? A person who purchases land with regard to its produce may not change the form of the land. He may not build, nor may he destroy. When, by contrast, a person purchases land for a specific time, he may build and destroy. During that specific time, he may act in the same manner as does one who purchases the land forever.

Halacha 7

What is the difference between a person who sells a field with regard to the produce it yields, and a person who sells a colleague the produce of a particular field?

When a person sells the produce of a particular field, the purchaser has no right to use this field at all. He is forbidden even to enter, except to take out his produce. The owner of the field, by contrast, may do whatever he desires within.

When, by contrast, a person sells a field with regard to the produce it yields, the owner of the field may not enter the field without the consent of the purchaser, and the purchaser may use the field as he desires.

Halacha 8

What is the difference between a person who purchases a field with regard to the produce it yields, and a person who rents a field from a colleague?

A person who purchases a field with regard to the produce it yields may plant trees or seeds within it whenever he desires or leave it fallow. A renter does not have this right, as will be explained with regard to rentals.

A renter does not have the right to sublet the property. One who buys the property may, however, sell the rights he purchased to another person.

Halacha 9

When a person sells the benefit to be obtained from a dovecote or the benefit to be obtained from a beehive to a colleague, the sale is binding. He is not considered to have sold an entity that has not come into existence. For he is not selling the doves that will be born or the honey that will be produced in the beehive. Instead, he is selling the dovecote with regard to the benefit it produces, and the beehive for its honey.

The seller can be compared to a person who rents a stream of water to a colleague, in which instance the renter may derive benefit from everything he catches within. Similarly, when a person sells a dovecote with regard to its benefit, it is as if he sells a tree with regard to its fruit. And the laws applying to both of them are like those applying to a person who rents a house, as we have explained in Halachah 1. Such a person may derive all the possible benefits from the property. Similar laws apply in all analogous situations.

Halacha 10

The owner of the dovecote does not acquire the eggs and the fledgling sin the dovecote until they fly. This is a Rabbinic decree, enacted as a safeguard to the prohibition, Deuteronomy 22:6: "Do not take the mother with the young."

Therefore, if a person wants to transfer the ownership of these eggs or these fledglings to a colleague, he should rap on the dovecote so that the mothers will fly away, lifting themselves up from the ground. He should then transfer ownership of the dovecote to his colleague via a kinyan chalifin, by virtue of the transfer of landed property, or via another means of acquiring movable property.

Halacha 11

When a person purchases the benefit to be derived from a dovecote from a colleague, he is not entitled to take all the fledglings that will be born from the time of the purchase onward. If he did that, the mothers would fly away and he would destroy the dovecote entirely. Instead, he should leave enough of the fledglings so that the dovecote will remain populated.

Halacha 12

How many of the fledglings must he leave? If there were mother doves and female fledglings at the time he sold the benefit from the dovecote, he should leave the first pair of offspring that the mothers will bear, so that the mothers will be able to establish rapport with the first pair and with the female fledglings that were with them from the time of the sale. He should also leave two pairs of fledglings from those that the daughters who were in the dovecote from the time of the sale bear, so that the daughters will be able to establish rapport with these two pair that they bore. Whatever offspring are born after the first two pair from the daughters and the first pair of the mother belong to the purchaser.

Halacha 13

When a person purchases the benefit to be gained from a beehive from a colleague, he may take three swarms of bees - one after the other. After that, he should take a swarm and leave a swarm to populate the beehive.

Halacha 14

When a person purchases blocks of a beehive from a colleague, he should leave at least two blocks in the beehive, so that the bees do not fly away and abandon the hive.

Halacha 15

When a person purchases olive trees from a colleague to cut down as lumber, he must leave two fistfuls of the tree above the ground before cutting. If he purchases a wild fig tree that was never cut down, he must leave three handbreadths before cutting. If he purchases a wild fig tree that was cut down previously, he must leave two handbreadths. For other trees, one handbreadth must be left before cutting.

For reeds and vines, he must leave the lowest knot above the ground. With regard to palm trees and cedar trees, the purchaser should dig out its roots, for it will not grow again.

Chapter Twenty Four

Halacha 1

When a person sells three trees within his field, even three small newly planted trees, or three growths of one tree, the purchaser also acquires the land necessary to nurture them. Even if the trees dry up or are chopped down, he still owns the land necessary to nurture them. The purchaser also acquires all the other trees between them.

Halacha 2

How much land is necessary to nurture them? The land beneath them, between them and beyond them, in which a person picking fruit can stand together with his basket.

This place - the place in which a person picking fruit can stand together with his basket - may not be sown by either the buyer or the seller unless the other agrees.

Halacha 3

When does the above apply? When the three trees that he purchases are positioned like the three feet of a range on which a pot is placed - i.e., two parallel to each other and the third equidistant between them, but not on the line connecting them. There must be at least four cubits between each tree, and no more than sixteen cubits.

Halacha 4

From where does one measure? From the wide portion of the trunk of the tree.

In the following situations, by contrast, the purchaser does not acquire land: the trees were not standing in such a position, they were closer together than four cubits or more distant than sixteen cubits; he purchased one after the other; he sold him two trees in the midst of his field and the third on the boundary line; the purchaser bought two trees in one person's field and one in a field belonging to a colleague; or a cistern, an irrigation ditch or the public domain was interposed between the purchaser's three trees.

Therefore, the purchaser does not acquire the trees between the trees he purchased. If his trees dry up or are cut down, he has no further rights.

Halacha 5

The following rules apply whenever a person purchases three trees and therefore acquires land: If the trees grow and a new branch emerges outward from the trunk, it should be cut off, so as not to limit the passage of the owner of the field.

All the twigs and small branches that emerge from the trees - even those that emerge from the roots - belong to the owner of the trees, for he has acquired the land.

Halacha 6

When a person purchases two trees in a field belonging to a colleague, the purchaser does not acquire any land. Therefore, if one of his trees dies or is cut down, he has no further right to the land.

If his two trees grow and produce twigs and small branches, they should be cut off, lest they grow into the earth and appear as a third tree. Then the purchaser would tell the seller: "You sold me three trees and I have a right to the land."

Halacha 7

The following laws apply to all the branches that the owner of the trees trims from them. Any branches that grow from the portion of the trunk that sees the sun belong to the owner of the trees. The branches that grow from the roots and do not see the sun belong to the owner of the field. With regard to palm trees, the owner of the tree does not acquire any of the branches, for they do not grow from the trunk.

Halacha 8

When a person sells landed property but retains the rights to the trees, he also retains possession of half of the land. For if he did not retain possession of the land, the purchaser would tell him: "Uproot your trees."

Similarly, if he retains the rights to two trees, he also retains possession of the land appropriate for them. For if he did not retain possession of the land, the purchaser would tell him: "Uproot your trees."

Halacha 9

When a person sells trees, but retains possession of the land, the owner of the trees acquires possession of the land necessary for them, as we have explained.

If a person sold the land to one person and the trees to another, and the purchaser of the trees manifested his ownership over the trees, and the purchaser of the land manifested his ownership over the land, the purchaser of the trees acquires the trees and half the land, while the purchaser of the land acquires only half the land.

Halacha 10

When brothers divide an inheritance, one taking an orchard and one taking a field of grain, the owner of the orchard receives four cubits in the field of grain next to the orchard. He is granted this land because we assume that they divided the land with this stipulation in mind. It need not be stated explicitly, because it is something that is well known.

Halacha 11

The following rules apply when a person sells a field containing date palms to a colleague and specifies that he is selling him the field with the exception of one specific tree. If it is a valuable and high-quality tree, we assume that he retained ownership of that one date palm alone; the remainder belong to the purchaser. If the date palm that he specified that he was retaining is inferior, we assume that he surely retained ownership over the others, and the purchaser does not acquire any of the date palms at all.

Halacha 12

The following rules apply when a person sells a field to a colleague and tells him that he is selling it to him with the exception of the trees. If it contains only date palms, the seller retains ownership over the date palms. If it contains only vines, the seller retains ownership over the vines. Similar rules apply if it contains only one other type of tree.

If the field contains vines and date palms, the seller retains ownership over the vines alone. If it contains other trees and vines, the seller retains ownership over the other trees alone. Similarly, if it contains other trees and date palms, he retains the other trees alone. The rationale is that whoever sells, sells generously,

If the seller retains ownership over date palms, he retains ownership over only those date palms that are tall and that one must ascend by means of a rope. The others belong to the purchaser. If he retains ownership over trees, he retains ownership over only those trees that will not be bent over by a yoke. Those that can be bent over by a yoke belong to the purchaser and are considered to be part of the field.

Halacha 13

The following rules apply when a person tells a colleague, "I am selling you land and date palms." Even if there are no date palms on the land that he was intending to sell, if he desires to transfer ownership of two other date palms, the transaction is binding. The purchaser does not have the option of saying: "I am purchasing only land that has date palms growing on it."

If, however, the seller tells him: "I am selling you land with date palms," the sale is binding only when there are at least two date palms on the land. If not, it is considered a transaction entered into under false premises, and it is nullified. If the seller tells the purchaser: "I am selling you land for date palms," it need not have date palms. This expression indicates merely that the land is fit to grow date palms.

Halacha 14

When a person sells an orchard to a colleague, he must write: "Acquire the date palms, the dates and the palm branches." Although the purchaser acquires all of these entities even when they are not explicitly mentioned in the deed of sale, mentioning them makes the wording of the document articulate.

Similarly, when a person sells landed property to a colleague, he must write: "I have not retained ownership over anything in this sale," to prevent judgments and claims from arising.

Halacha 15

The following rules apply when a person sells a house to a colleague: Even though he writes in the deed of sale: "I have transferred ownership of its depths and its heights," he must write to him:"Acquire from the ground of the earth's depths to the heights of the sky." For the heights and the depths of the property are not transferred when no specification is made.

If he said that he was transferring ownership of the heights and the depths, the purchaser would acquire the height - i.e., the atmosphere alone- and the depths, what is under the ground. He does not acquire what is in their midst. When, however, he writes: "From the ground of the earth's depths to the heights of the sky," he acquires a water receptacle and a cistern that are in the midst of the earth and the pathways that are in between the ceiling and the top of the building.

Halacha 16

When a person sells a home on the condition that the upper storeyremains his, he retains possession of that portion of the building. If he desires to extend projections from it, he has the right. If it falls, he may rebuild it. And if there was a third storey built on top of the second and it fell, if he desires to rebuild it, he may build it as it was before it fell.

Halacha 17

Although a person sells his grave, the path to his grave, the place where the funeral procession stands in honor of the departed, or the place where eulogies are recited, the family may come and bury the deceased there or perform any of the other rites against the will of the purchaser.

This privilege was granted lest the failure to do so blemish the honor of the family. They must pay the purchaser for the grave in which the deceased was buried. This provision is granted even though it was not stated explicitly in the original deed of sale.

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Hayom Yom:

• Thursday, Cheshvan 27, 5704 ~ 31 October 2013 ~~ Friday, Cheshvan 28, 5774 ~  NOvember 2013

Thursday, Cheshvan 27, 5704

Torah Lesson:

Chumash: Tol'dot, Chamishi with Rashi.

Tehillim: 120-134.

Tanya: Examine Etz Chayim (p. 595) ...as is known. (p. 597).

R. Aizik Homiler related: When I came to Lyozna I met elder chassidim who had been chassidim of the Maggid and of R. Menachem Mendel of Horodok. They used to say:

Have affection for a fellow-Jew and G-d will have affection for you; do a kindness for a fellow-Jew and G-d will do a kindness for you; befriend a fellow-Jew and G-d will befriend you.

Friday, Cheshvan 28, 5704

Torah Lesson:

Chumash: Tol'dot, Shishi with Rashi.

Tehillim: 135-139.

Tanya: To understand the (p. 597) ...on Pekudei.) (p. 599).

The concept of Divine Providence is this: Not only are all particular movements of the various creatures directed by Providence, and not only is that Providence itself the life-force and maintained existence of every creature - but even more, the particular movement of any creature is in general terms related to the grand design of Creation... The aggregate of all individual acts brings to completion G-d's grand design in the mystery of all Creation.

Ponder this: If the swaying of a blade of grass is brought about by Divine Providence and is crucial to the fulfillment of the purpose of Creation, how much more so with regard to mankind in general, and Israel (the people close to him)1 in particular!

Compiled and arranged by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, of righteous memory, in 5703 (1943) from the talks and letters of the sixth Chabad Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, of righteous memory.

FOOTNOTES

1.Tehillim 148:14; Siddur p. 36.

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Daily Thought:

Many Children

Until recently, it was always considered the greatest of blessings to have many children.

Wealth is not a mansion filled with silver and gold.
Wealth is children and grandchildren growing up on the right path.

All For Your Children

Every day, take one half hour to think about your children and where they’re headed.

Then do all you can about it.
Then do more.

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